Here we are, not too far along into 2014, and plans for a new highway reauthorization are already underway. Let’s think about this for a minute as we look forward to a bill that must address the future funding of our national infrastructure even as we continue to wait patiently for rules that our current reauthorization promised but is not delivering.
Yes, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) was long on safety titles that the industry expected and quite frankly anxiously awaited, yet the delivery of said titles has nowhere near made its mark. So pardon my expression right now as I sit here typing with a dumbfounded look on my face. In reality, the Surface Transportation Bill was put forth over a year ago with promises made to issue rules that the industry has been clamoring for—but we’re still waiting.
Let’s look at the mandates for electronic logs. These rulemakings have been in the pipeline for so long that the devices have now changed names. In the beginning, we referred to them as electronic onboard recorders (EOBRs). I would have thought that by the time we got used to calling them electronic logging devices (ELDs), a new rule would have made its way out of the agency. In fact, by the close of 2013, I was answering so many phone calls and emails from folks speculating a Christmas break release, it made me check the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) more frequently to be sure they were still being reviewed. Saying the wheels of government turn slowly is an understatement.
Oddly enough, the story is the same for other important rules that we are waiting for, more specifically, a rule that would create a national clearinghouse for drug and alcohol test results which continues to ride the pine at OMB right next to the ELD rule. In fact, this rule has been at OMB for so long, it may be renting space there. Typically, a review of a regulation will last about 90 days at OMB, yet the clearinghouse rule has been there since March 2013. By the time you read this column, it may be close to a year’s time that this rule has been sitting idly at OMB.
While we as a nation insist that our roads and infrastructure need funding to improve (and they do), let’s not lose sight of the fact that our current Surface Transportation Bill has initiatives in it that still need to be addressed. While many have talked about this industry as being over-regulated, we still wait for rules and mandates that make sense. Perhaps it is not over-regulation that worries us, but a lack of sensible regulations. For instance, how about a rule that would create a reporting structure for positive drug test results, placing an even greater emphasis on our industry’s zero tolerance policy. Or even a usable rule that levels the compliance playing field when it comes to recording a driver’s hours of service.
In other words, while the time is now to plan for the future, we cannot forget about our issues at hand. We must move forward on rules that aren’t a burden to the system but help make the system better, stronger and safer for those who operate on our highways.
David Heller, CDS, is director of safety and policy for the Truckload Carriers Assn. He is responsible for interpreting and communicating industry-related regulations and legislation to the membership of TCA. Send comments to [email protected].
