Truckers & Owner-Operators Challenge FMCSA E-Log Mandate

Phil Cohen

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The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) decision to enact a new federal requirement that calls for all truck drivers to use electronic logs (E-logs) has caused a quite a stir in the trucking industry. While large trucking companies and the American Trucking Association (ATA) have publicly lauded the policy-to-be, one faction of truckers feels as if the upcoming E-log mandate will violate their constitutional rights.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has filed a lawsuit with the Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, claiming that the FMCSA’s passage of the E-Log requirement directly violates their constitutional protection against illegal search and seizure, as is guaranteed by the fourth amendment.

A Divide in the Industry

The OOIDA argues that the law both violates their rights and is arbitrary in its nature. They claim that there is no evidence that E-logs will help prevent highway accidents and that the proposed system fails to compare safety records of E-log users with those of non-users. The way they see it, the E-log system is nothing more than a way for the authorities to keep increased surveillance on the comings and goings of truck drivers, directly violating their privacy.

Proponents of the regulation quickly issued a rebuttal after the OOIDA filed the lawsuit. According to the Wall Street Journal, ATA spokesman Sean McNally countered the OOIDA by saying that “organizations that are serious about driver safety and welfare should be supporting a move to a 21st Century technology.”

So far, the FMCSA administration has been mum on the issue. The OOIDA is confident that their lawsuit could prove to be a legitimate threat to the scheduled implementation of the E-log regulation, which as of now is scheduled to be enforced in December of 2017.

The E-log mandate has been a remarkably divisive issue within the trucking industry, as it separates independent trucking companies/owner-operators and larger trucking companies. If the OOIDA case doesn’t go in their favor, life could get harder for owner-operators and small trucking companies. Unfortunately, those in the transportation have to wait for a lengthy legal procedure in order to know the fate of the E-log mandate. They do not, however, have to wait for a solution to their financial problems. Factor Finders is an industry expert when it comes to saving small trucking companies money. Check out our truck factoring services for owner-operators and make sure that your financial situation is stable and suited for business expansion.

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Phil Cohen

Phil is the owner of PRN Funding and sister company Factor Finders. He has been an authority in the factoring industry for over 20 years, serving on the board of directors for several factoring associations.

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