Noem reiterates regulatory relief request for certain U.S. trucking companies

U.S. Rep. Kristi Noem (R-SD) maintains that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) should consider the individual safety records of specific small trucking businesses before forcing them to use an electronic logging device (ELD), or E-Log, which gets attached to the engines of commercial vehicles to track driving hours.

“I continue to believe the ELD mandate should be delayed for all sectors so we can better understand its impact, particularly on small trucking companies and those that haul live animals,” Rep. Noem said on Feb. 2.

In a Feb. 1 letter to DOT Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Deputy Administrator Cathy F. Gautreaux, Rep. Noem was among 25 House members who requested that the agency approve the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association’s (OOIDA) application to exempt small trucking companies with exemplary safety records from the ELD mandate.

“OOIDA’s request would prevent small trucking businesses, who operate on the slimmest of margins, from maintaining costly fleet management devices that provide them no economic or productivity benefits,” according to the letter, which also included signatures from U.S. Reps. Darin LaHood (R-IL), John Moolenaar (R-MI), Sean Duffy (R-WI), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), and Mike Kelly (R-PA).

ELDs originally were mandated under the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) law enacted in 2012, according to FMCSA, and offer a secure, standardized user interface for logging service hours and record-of-duty status. FMCSA enforces driving hours-of-service requirements to ensure that driver fatigue does not impair safety.

Commercial fleets had a December 2017 ELD-implementation deadline. The lawmakers’ letter noted that the ELD requirement comes with a $2 billion price tag for motor carriers to attain compliance.

“The exemption we supported would allow small trucking companies to continue serving their communities, while not adversely affecting the safety of the road,” according to the letter. “By still requiring drivers to comply with the Hours of Service Regulation through paper logs and only applying to companies with proven safety records, this request allows small trucking companies to continue their pursuit of the American dream.”

The House members also pointed out that FMCSA previously has granted exemption requests and said the OOIDA request is in line with such approved exemptions, as well as with the Trump administration’s goals for sustaining U.S. economic growth through regulatory relief.

“Clearly, the agency is capable and willing to provide relief for industries who have demonstrated that exemptions will not decrease safety,” according to the letter. “In this regard, OOIDA’s application for exemption is unquestionably consistent with those previously granted and merits the agency’s approval.”

The letter is the latest in a series of Noem’s requests that ELD implementation be delayed or exempted for certain truckers. For example, she is among 73 cosponsors of the ELD Extension Act of 2017, H.R. 3282, introduced on July 18, 2017 by Rep. Brian Babin (R-TX). The bill, which according to Noem’s office would delay the ELD mandate for two years pending more impact studies, has been referred to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit.