In The News
Obama administration doesn’t like unlimited restart, says it’s ‘undercut’ to safety
WASHINGTON — Add President Barack Obama to those who don't like the idea of permanently reverting to the 34-hour restart provision that allows unlimited use of the restart and doesn't require two consecutive 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. periods be included in a restart.
In a policy statement released Monday, the administration said it is concerned about provisions in the FY2017 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies appropriations bill "that have the potential to undercut public safety, including section 131 of the bill regarding the federal Hours of Service regulation addressing driver fatigue."
Section 131 reads:
"None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this act or any other act may be used to implement, administer, or enforce the requirement for two off-duty periods from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. under subsection 395.3(c) or the restriction on use of more than one restart during a 168-hour period under subsection 395.3(d) of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, and such provisions shall have no force or effect as of the date of submission of the final report issued by the Secretary of Transportation, unless the Secretary and the Inspector General of the Department of Transportation each review and determine that the final report (1) meets the statutory requirements set forth and (2) establishes that commercial motor vehicle drivers who operated under the restart provisions in operational effect between July 1, 2013, and the day before the date of enactment of such Public Law demonstrated statistically significant improvement in all outcomes related to safety, operator fatigue, driver health and longevity, and work schedules, in comparison to commercial motor vehicle drivers who operated under the restart provisions in operational effect on June 30, 2013."
The administration also said it appreciated the Senate Appropriations Committee's continued support for the TIGER program, but said it was disappointed that the bill does not provide the full FY 2017 budget request of $1.25 billion to fund infrastructure projects of national and regional significance. Demand for TIGER has been overwhelming, with more than $134 billion requested in more than 6,700 applications to date, the White House said.
The administration urged Congress to fully fund the FY 2017 budget request for DOT to implement the Data Act, which "supports DOT's efforts to provide more transparent federal spending data ... ."
The Trucker staff can be reached to comment on this article at [email protected].