[Creek Jackson]

Posted February 11, 2009

HOS petition again denied by FMCSA

In a “Conclusion” paragraph at the end of the 19-page response sent to Joan Claybrook, President of Public Citizen, on Jan. 16, 2009, John H. Hill, outgoing Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), said: “Petitioners disappointment in the outcome of FMCSA’s weighing of individual studies, and the relevance of particular studies to risk calculations regarding individual elements of the overall rule package, does not support the petition for reconsideration. For these reasons, FMCSA denies the petition.”

To refresh your memory, recall that the same four groups who challenged the hours of service (HOS) rules several times in the past had again filed a petition for reconsideration with the Administrator of FMCSA on Dec. 18, 2008.

A portion of the December 2008 Public Citizen news release follows: “The federal government should reconsider a seriously flawed regulation that can compel professional truck drivers to work and drive 19th century sweatshop hours, four major safety organizations said today. The groups – Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Public Citizen, the Truck Safety Coalition and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters – filed a petition for reconsideration today with the administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).”

In his Jan. 16, 2009, response to Claybrook, Hill copied the other petitioners at the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the Truck Safety Coalition, and the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. The groups whose request for reconsideration was denied now have 60 days to file for judicial review of the HOS regulations by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Stay tuned for more developments in the next chapter of what seems to be a “never-ending story”.

[Rev.Vassago]

Originally Posted by Creek Jackson

The groups whose request for reconsideration was denied now have 60 days to file for judicial review of the HOS regulations by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

And you know they will. The big question this time will be whether the courts throw out the rules (like they did last time).

[mike3fan]

Originally Posted by Rev.Vassago

And you know they will. The big question this time will be whether the courts throw out the rules (like they did last time).

I thought they threw out the way the rules were registered or open to public comment, not the rules themselves?

[mike3fan]

from the 2007 ruling

The agency had failed to follow proper procedures in issuing the two measures, the court said, such as allowing public comment on the 11-hour limit. The provisions were part of a larger regulation that was allowed to stand.

"The good news in the decision is that the flaws that the court found were procedural in nature and can be corrected by the agency," the ATA said.

SouthCoastToday.com: Court throws out rules extending truckers' hours

[Orangetxguy]

Hmmmm...I thought once they were printed in the federal register, there was no taking them back.

Oooooh well. I know that Public Citizen has my back. I feel them walking on it every time one of them goes to the outhouse.

[Windwalker]

Suppose we start messing with their work hours. They're not safe on the highway after spending 12 hours at work either.

[Skywalker]

I thought on the last go around Claybrook and her little band of nazi's were told they had no legal standing in the issue....