On Monday, April 5, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a Final Rule in the Federal Register on the use of electronic logging devices for tracking hours-of-service compliance by the trucking industry.

Click here for a summary of the final rule.

FMCSA's final rule differs from the 2007 proposed rule in that it includes broader criteria for identifying non-compliant carriers that will be required to install such devices. With the use of broader criteria, more carriers will be required to install electronic logging devices. The Final Rule has three major components:

1. Regulatory Incentives - to encourage greater voluntary adoption of devices; 2. Mandatory Adoption - for those motor carriers with a pattern of hours-of-service violations found during a single compliance review; 3. Device Specifications - that address how the devices must work and what data they must collect.

The rule includes a few other matters that will be of particular interest to motor

carriers:

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While this rule only mandates electronic logging devices for a relatively small number of motor carriers, FMCSA intends to initiate a rulemaking later this year that will consider a mandate for a broader population of motor carriers. In particular, FMCSA will likely propose a mandate for carriers it feels have "higher potential risks," such as passenger carriers, hazardous materials carriers, and new motor carriers initiating operations.

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Supporting Documents - In addition to including violations of the 11, 14, and 60/70 hour rule, the list of violations that could trigger a mandate also includes "failing to preserve driver's records of duty status supporting documents for six months."

As a result, a carrier not found to have violated the driving and on-duty time regulations (e.g., 11 hour driving rule) could still be required to install electronic logging devices in its vehicles, merely for improper recordkeeping.

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Existing Fleet Management Devices - It is important to note that the final rule addresses the use of devices that can capture the data necessary for verification of HOS compliance. It does not speak to more comprehensive fleet management systems that also capture engine and driver performance data. However, motor carriers can use such devices to meet the requirements and conditions of the Final Rule if their devices also include a component that meets the specifications for capturing required HOS compliance information.

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