FMCSA exempts truckers from HOS regulations with 16 state emergency declaration

In the wake of devastating flooding that hit the midwest last week, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued a regional emergency declaration to exempt truckers from following certain regulations including Hours of Service requirements in multiple states.

The FMCSA issued the emergency declaration on March 19 for Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

The emergency declaration is intended to assist with recovery efforts following a severe weather and flooding event that claimed multiple lives, caused power outages, and did major damage to homes, businesses, and infrastructure.

The emergency declaration applies to truck drivers who are providing “direct support of relief efforts” to the flood damaged areas. The FMCSA says that “Direct assistance terminates when a driver or commercial motor vehicle is used in interstate commerce to transport cargo or provide services not directly supporting the emergency relief effort or when the motor carrier dispatches a driver or commercial motor vehicle to another location to begin operations in commerce.”

The declaration exempts truckers hauling relief supplies from Parts 390 – 399 of Title 49 CFR of Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations from now until April 18 or when the emergency is declared to be over, whichever happens first.

Additionally, the FMCSA says that they will not be enforcing the Temporary Operating Authority Registration fee for truckers who are providing direct assistance to disaster victims.

You can click here for more information on the emergency regional declaration.