As is often the case with rulemakings, publication date for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s proposed rule on mandated speed limiters for trucks has been pushed back from spring to the end of the summer, and may very well be pushed back again to an even later date.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has the second highest number of pending rules of any agency other than the Department of Health and Human Services, which has the most, according to a government regulation website.
It’s been a year since the proposed rule to mandate speed limiters on trucks (probably at 65 mph although the exact speed is unknown at this time) was sent to the Office of Management and Budget.
This rulemaking was a joint effort by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
John Larkin, managing director and head of transportation capital markets research at Stifel, Nicolaus and Co., told delegates at a recent Truckload Carriers Association Annual Convention that rulemakings such as the speed limiter mandate, ELDs and more rigorous medical check-ups may shrink the number of compliant carriers.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has opposed the speed limiter mandate while the American Trucking Associations has pushed hard for it.
A government source told The Trucker that as the Obama administration is winding down and as workers with politically connected positions scramble to look for post-administration jobs, progress on such issues as rulemakings get even slower.
Some rules appear close to coming out of the hopper, however.
The next installment of the joint rule by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce truck emissions and increase fuel efficiency is set to be published on September 12, at least as of now.
And publication of the final rule on the alcohol and drug clearinghouse is still on go for August 29, according to DOT’s regulatory update.
The Trucker staff can be reached to comment on this article ateditor@thetrucker.com.
Source: thetrucker.com
