Recent Regulation Changes

D.C. Circuit Denies Public Citizen Motion to Invalidate HOS Interim Final Rule.

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued a terse order on 1/24/08 denying Public Citizen’s request to invalidate the recently issued hours-of-service (HOS) Interim Final Rule (IFR). Public Citizen claimed that the Court’s prior decisions in the case effectively prohibited the agency from issuing an IFR that included an 11-hour daily driving time limit and a 34-hour restart provision. ATA, the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA), and shipper interests all filed briefs opposing the Public Citizen motion. Those filings highlighted the need for retention of the 11 and 34-hour provisions in an IFR to avoid significant disruptions to the industry and to law enforcement and the significant safety gains achieved under the current HOS rules. The decision means that the 11 and 34-hour provisions will remain in place pending further FMCSA consideration of a final HOS rule. The Court did expressly note that its denial of the motion did not preclude Public Citizen from challenging the IFR in a separate legal proceeding. However such a proceeding would, even if expedited, take many months to pursue, with a final HOS rule likely to be issued before the litigation could be completed.

WI PARS Program

WI has made the Employer Notification program and the DOTI program online tools. The new program is called PARS, Public Abstract Request System has incorporated these two programs into one. Through the employer notification program within PARS, carriers with CDL drivers receive notification of new activity on an enrolled driver's record. PARS now has an email features that electronically notifies the company administrator of any new activity on the CDL's holder's record. The MVR previously mailed to the carrier is now replaced with the general email notice to look for new activity within the online program. This feature meets the requirement in FMCSR 391.25 and therefore, allows the motor carrier to be waived of the yearly need to obtain driving records for drivers enrolled in this or a similar type program. The motor carrier still is required to have the driver complete the certification of violations form and annual review process. If utilizing this program, ensure the driver list stays accurate. In addition to WI, the following states have similar type programs: Arkansas, California, Illinois, Michigan, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, and Virginia. California has a mandatory program for Commercial Driver License (CDL) holders. Please contact your HNI service team with any questions.

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