The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) continues to roll-out various changes to the hours-of-service regulations that were initially adopted in a published final rulemaking, dated December 27, 2011. See, Federal Register, Vol. 76, No. 248. The first set of changes became effective in February 2012, and the remainder is scheduled to become effective July 1, 2013. It is, therefore, vital that drivers of commercial vehicles familiarize themselves with the new regulations, if only to understand the interrelationship among the terms ‘on-duty’, ‘driving-time’ and ‘off-duty’.
Left unchanged are the rules limiting the minimum hours of off-duty between shifts to 10 consecutive hours and, conversely, the maximum hours of driving to 11 hours per day, provided the 11 hours are not consecutive (thus requiring a rest break).
A threshold issue to consider involves whether or not the driver operates a CMV within a 100 air-mile radius of the location the driver had reported to work and, if so, whether to apply the exception afforded by §395.1(e). This exception relieves the driver from maintaining records of duty status and recording rest break periods, or from having time records in their possession (to facilitate inspection). While being relieved from these duties, drivers electing to operate in accordance with §395.1(e) remain obligated to (i) not work more than 12 consecutive hours; (ii) not exceed more than 11 hours driving time; (iii) stop driving if 8 consecutive hours have passed since the last rest break (of at least 30 minutes); (iv) return to the point of origin within 12 hours and (v) adhere to either the 60-hours/7-day or 70-hours/8-day limits. Although the driver is relieved of certain recordkeeping duties and obligations, these duties and obligations are merely shifted to the driver’s employer; in short, the driver’s employer is the party responsible for recordkeeping, as well as for ensuring that all drivers adhere to regulations regarding on-duty, driving time and off-duty limits.
Regardless of the exception afforded drivers under §395.1(e), effective July 1, 2013, ALL drivers of commercial vehicles are mandated to take one rest break, of at least 30-minutes in length, after eight (8) consecutive on-duty hours if the driver plans to continue driving until the 11 hour daily maximum. In performing the calculation, drivers need to factor in ‘on duty’ time (e.g., loading and other on-duty tasks) hours when calculating the timing of the required rest break. For example, if the driver spends one hour (6am-7am) loading at the beginning of the workday, then the driver has only 7 hours of driving available (7am-2pm) before taking the required rest break (2pm-2:30pm)(6am-2pm=8 hours consecutive). After completing the thirty minute rest break the driver can continue for another 4 hours driving (2:30pm-6:30pm)(satisfying the 11 hours maximum drive-time). In this example, the 30-minute rest break also counts towards the 14-hour on-duty limit; thus, instead of ending the workday 14 hours after it had begun (6am-8pm), the driver can apply the :30-minute rest break and continue to perform on-duty tasks, but not drive, until 8:30pm. Meals, and other ‘off-duty’ activities, qualify towards the 30-minute break; however, any break less than 10 hours long must be applied when calculating the 14-hour daily on-duty limit.
Long-haul drivers of explosives who are required to attend the vehicle at all times are permitted to credit the time spent ‘in attendance’ (of the vehicle) towards the rest break requirement, provided that the driver is performing no other work during the time period ‘in attendance’ of the vehicle only. This scenario is to be recorded in the driver’s duty status log book as on-duty with the explanation that it also qualifies towards the rest break.
To ensure compliance with these rules, drivers can expect increased scrutiny of driver’s logs and, similarly, employers can expect a more robust inspection by FMSCA. Both the driver and the employer can be equally liable and subject to fines flowing from any violation; for example, driving more than three hours beyond the 11-hour limit may constitute an ‘egregious’ violation, subjecting the driver to a penalty of up to $2,750 for the offense as well as penalizing the employer, up to a maximum of $11,000, if it is proven to have knowledge of the driver’s misconduct.
In conclusion, the FMSCA is elevating the record-keeping requirements for all drivers, especially drivers that regularly drive long distances.
