Question About EOBRs
I recently received a question from a good customer. He came across information about the Commerical Driver Compliance Improvement Act, which is a Senate bill, S. 3884. It was introduced by Senators Mark Pryor (D-Ark) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn). If made law, it will require all commercial motor vehicles to have electronic on-board recorders.
So what do we know about this bill? Well, reaching back into my high school civics knowledge, all bills not made law by the end of a 2 year Congress die. This Congress ends in less than a month, thank God. So, this bill would have to pass the Senate before the end of next month. Not likely, seeing as they are trying to pass some kind of regulatory overkill law about food safety, give illegals free college, and maybe extend the current tax rates. Then a matching bill must be passed by the House. I don’t think there is any matching legislation pending in the House, and it is very unlikely there will be any before the end of the Congress. So, it’s very unlikely it will happen in this session of Congress.
What about in future Congresses? Maybe. It would have to pass the Republican House, where I would like to think this kind of job-killing legislation would be DOA, but you never know. I note that Lamar Alexander, one of the co-sponsors in the Senate is a “Republican”. I put that in parenthesis, because as anyone who follows politics knows, Alexander is a RINO, that is, Republican In Name Only. So, if a bunch of RINOs in the House, join the Democratic minority, it could happen.
What makes it more likely to happen is, a number of mega-carriers, like US Xpress (from Tennessee, hence Alexander’s involvement), JB Hunt, Schneider, Maverick, and Knight are pushing this. They are doing so, of course, because they have all installed the EOBRs, and they want to force everyone else to do the same. I do not believe ATA has come out in support of this mandate yet, but that is only a matter of time.
My comment to the smaller carriers is, unless you want to be forced to pony up for EOBRs, you’d better pay attention, and make sure you let your Senators and Representatives know how you feel. The big carriers want to force you to have them, and they have the politicians on speed-dial. You’d better involve yourselves, or write a check for equipment you don’t want. Don’t think the mega-carriers already have this won. Despite the huge size of these mega-carriers, the smaller carriers vastly outnumber the mega-carriers.
In the News
So, what’s been happening lately? Well, CSA 2010 is almost here, you probably knew that. Next month, FMCSA will supposedly turn on their website, so everyone can see everyone else’s CSA 2010 scores. We’ll see. The White House is still reviewing FMCSA’s proposal for changing the hours of service rules. Any day now, any day. Like I said before, I guess it will be 10 hours driving, 14 hour rule stays the same, and the 70 hour rule goes to a 48 hour reset.
The GOP, aided by the Tea Party took the House of Representatives, and gained a few Senate seats in the election. That may slow down the tide of regulations coming out of FMCSA; maybe not. There is a bill in the Senate called the Commercial Driver Compliance Improvement Act, which will require all trucks in the U.S. to install EOBRs on them after 3 years. This bill has the backing of JB Hunt, Knight Transportation, Maverick USA, Schneider, and US Xpress. I imagine, it probably as the backing of ATA as a whole. Maybe not…. some ATA members may be against EOBRs. Anyway, speaking as a Tea Party member in good standing, I hope this is Dead-On-Arrival in the House. It probably is. After all, we didn’t put them in there to expand government even further, we put them in there to do the opposite.
More CSA 2010 Thoughts
Well, this isn’t totally related to CSA 2010, but I’ve discovered if you use the words CSA 2010 a lot, it makes you show up higher on the search engines. So CSA 2010, CSA 2010, CSA 2010. Anyway, I’ve noticed that some of my customers’ Out of Service rates are staying fairly steady over the past 30 months, yet their Safestat scores are going up. Safestat and CSA 2010 operate on the principle of comparing you against all the other motor carriers with DOT numbers. The worst performers in terms of violations and accidents gets audited. CSA 2010 is just like Safestat in this regard; it’s just using a new methodology.
If my Out of Service percentages are staying the same, but my Safestat score are going up, it can only mean one thing: everyone else is getting better. It means I’d better get better too. For example, if I’m hitting .300, and the rest of the team is hitting .250, I’m the best hitter on the team. If next year everyone else is hitting .350, and I’m still hitting .300, I’d better pick it up, or I’m going to be benched or cut.
This could make sense. In the area of logbooks, more carriers are utilizing the electronic logs, which drastically cut down on the number of logbook violations a carrier receives. Also, with the advent of EZPass technology, and scanning kiosks at truckstops, there is probably less paperwork for a DOT cop to inspect in the truck at the time of a DOT roadside stop. Less paperwork means less chance of being nailed for a false log. All this means, there are less driver violations being cited on the roadside. This means you have to get your drivers to be cited less, too, to keep up with the Joneses.
Another analogy (I love analogies) is driving on the road. You are running at 75 mph, with a pack of other cars. You are with the flow of traffic, your chances of getting stopped are small. Suddenly the pack slows down, but you’re still going 75. Your chances of getting nailed have now increased greatly. You do not want to be nailed with a DOT audit.
More CSA 2010 Thoughts
Well, as we get closer to this thing, I learn more about it. I talked to two DOT people last week. One swears it’s going to revolutionize how the DOT does business. The other says its not much different from the system they’re using now. I sort of agree with the 2nd person. One thing I learned this past week is DOT is focusing even more intensely on the roadside inspections, including citations which were not Out of Service. This is a departure from the current system. For example, even if your logs at the office are in compliance, if you have a bunch of “log not current” cites on your roadside inspections, DOT is going to harass you.
It is important to take every DOT roadside inspection, and address every last citation on every one of them in writing. For example, your driver is written up for not wearing his seatbelt. Make a note that you made the driver watch a video on the importance of seatbelts. Or that you talked to the driver. Or that you pointed him to page 32 of your company manual which says seatbelts must be worn. Or that you fined him $50. Etc.
It might not be a bad idea to come up with a disciplinary policy geared specifically for roadside inspections. Maybe something like for every violation, you get a warning letter…. if you get too many, we suspend you, or fine you. If you pass a roadside inspection, we give you $25 or $50. More on this later….
Advocacy Groups Want an 8 hour rule
In the ongoing war over the number of hours truck drivers can legally drive, the “safety advocacy” groups have filed their idea of what the rules should be. This article comes from the June 28 written issue of Transport Topics (which is written by the American Trucking Association). If you want to read the whole article, seek out the written June 28 Transport Topics.
Public Citizen, which apparently includes the Teamsters, wants to limit driving to 8 hours a day, no more than a 12 hour on-duty day, and then a mandatory 12 hour off-duty period in between on-duty shifts. Hey, why stop there? Let’s not let them driver at all. That will stop the accidents.
ATA criticized the proposal, stating it’s just a bargaining position, throwing out a ridiculous starting point, and then hoping for a compromise. They also stated an 8 hour rule will create MORE accidents and deaths, as in order to move the same amount of freight, the trucking companies will have to use more and more trucks, which will lead to more congestion and accidents.
I agree 100% with ATA on that one. I would think exposure causes more accidents than anything else. Why do most accidents happen with 15 miles of your home? Because that’s where you do most of your driving, of course. If we have to put on 50% more trucks, to move the same amount of freight, that’s going to jam the already crowded highways even more, and cause even more traffic jams and crashes.
The current rules, which have been in place for about 4-5 years, have been successful. There has not been a surge in truck deaths. In fact, crashes have declined. The “safety” groups tell me that’s because of the poor economy, and reduced truck miles. You want to see a poor economy? Put this idiocy in place.
FMCSA Allows Scanned Logs
I think FMCSA is somewhat behind the curve on this one, but it is now officially issued guidance allowing a carrier to accept scanned logs, rather than the original paper copies. Here is a link to a Truckinginfo.com story. I know many carriers already do this, but I guess this makes it official. You never know when that DOT agent who prides himself on playing “gotcha” says, “where’s the original? Section 395.whatever says you have to have the original.” Good, one less thing to worry about.
More Thoughts on GPS audits
A man from a Midwestern carrier posted about his experience with the GPS audit. It pretty much backs up what I said in November of last year…. they are happening, if it happens to you, you probably won’t pass, and it won’t be pretty.
DOT is pushing for the on-board recorders. That is, technology which completes the driver’s log for him, and fills in the locations by the use of GPS satellites. I have two customers which have made the switch to the on-board recorders. I think it’s safe to say in both cases, their decision was influenced heavily by DOT’s heavy hand. In both cases, the number speeding violations their drivers are receiving has skyrocketed. Yes, they hardly ever get put Out of Service any more for logbooks, but instead their drivers are now being stopped for traffic violations. So which is more unsafe? A driver taking his own leisurely time to make a run in 15-16 hours, or a guy pushing like a madman to squeeze it into 14? I’ve said from the outset, I do not believe these GPS audits enhance safety, and this just proves my point.
More on Mandatory EOBRs
I know, I’m still wound up about this mandatory EOBR rule, which won’t be effective for another 2 years. Nevertheless, here is an article from a website called Purchasing.com.
In it, the OOIDA estimates the EOBRs will cost $2,000 annually. Annually? I’m not sure of that, I’m sure there will be some type of subscription fees per unit, but $2,000? Then further down the article, the transportation manager at True Value states installing and maintaining the EOBRs for his over 300 unit fleet cost, over 5 years, $1.5 million. So, that’s around $5,000 per truck, over 5 years. The True Value manager does say he thinks the investment is well worth it.
FMCSA Will Mandate EOBRs for Log Violators
The FMCSA issued a rulemaking last week which will force motor carriers accused of violating the hours of service regulations to install electronic on-board recorders (EOBR) in all of their trucks. Here is the Federal Register. It’s 46 pages long, so I’m not going to regurgitate it all here.
An EOBR is a computer-GPS type device which tracks where the driver and the truck are at. Basically, it takes the place of a logbook. It shows everywhere the driver has been, and the times he was at those locations. It is extremely difficult to falsify your hours of service, if an EOBR is recording where you are.
FMCSA’s regulations state that if a motor carrier is alleged to have 10% of more violations in a “critical” hours of service regulation, that motor carrier will be forced to install the EOBRs within 60 days. The motor carrier will be required to keep the EOBRs in the trucks for 2 years. These regulations will be effective on June 4, 2012.
This is a big deal. As far as the hours of service regulations go, I have always used the speed limit analogy. The limit might be 55 miles per hour, but no one actually drives 55, and it’s not enforced at 55. It’s enforced more like 10 miles over. It’s the same with the logbooks. If you do not have an EOBR, then your logs must match whatever timed documents you have, such as tolls, fuel statement, scale tickets. This enables drivers to cheat an hour or two here and there. Not so with an EOBR. Every last thing the driver does, is visible to DOT.
For the over-the-road, for-hire type carriers, if you don’t want to be forced to install black boxes in the trucks, and be forced to run strictly legal, then you cannot fail the hours of service part of a DOT audit. If you are forced to install the EOBRs, you’ll lose drivers, operational flexibility, and probably customers too, as your competitors won’t be subject to limitations of running strictly legal. Then there’s the cost of buying the equipment. These units are probably going to cost between $1,000 and $3,000 to install per unit. Then you have the cost to train the drivers, that’s another several thousands of dollars in lost time. Basically, if you have 10 trucks, you could be looking at $20,000 – 30,000 worth of equipment and training. If you don’t have the cash flow to make that kind of outlay, you’ll be done.
If you are not an over-the-road guy, say you’re a landscaper or construction outfit, this rule applies to you as well. Maybe your drivers only work 8 hours a day, but you’re sloppy on your paperwork, and they don’t fill out time records every day, like they should. If DOT finds more than 10% of your time records missing, you have to get the EOBRs. At least for the over-the-road drivers, the EOBRs do provide some benefit, such as tracking your vehicles, and eliminating that 5 minutes a day a driver fills out his logs, but if you’re a landscaper, you just bought a very expensive technology you don’t need.
The good news is this won’t happen for another 2 years, so I will revisit the topic before then. My recommendation is that you thoroughly audit your logs on a monthly basis…. or hire someone like me to do it for you. If you are getting audited, you’d better have me there, because if they write you up for log violations, you’d better get a loan to buy all the EOBRs the government demands you have.
FMCSA Conducting Listening Sessions on Hours of Service
Well, the FMCSA is going through the motions in revising the hours of service rules, holding the first of four “listening” sessions in Arlington, VA yesterday. They may call them listening sessions, hearing sessions would be more appropriate. You can talk, they hear you, but they sure as hell aren’t listening.
The Obama FMCSA has already cut a deal with the safety crazies and the Teamsters, now it’s just a matter of how bad it’s going to be. According to the Fleet Owner article, Joan Claybrook…. one of the leading safety leftists out there, is on record as wanting an 8 hour limit (rather than 11), a mandatory 16 hour break, and eliminating the 34 hour reset. The Teamsters also want to eliminate the 34 hour reset.
My guess is it will be a 10 hour rule again, retain the current 14 hour rule, and the 34 hour reset will become a 48 hour reset. And that’s if we’re very lucky. If we’re not lucky, they may do away with the reset altogether. The problem is, the data and the science supports the rules, as is, so for FMCSA to have firm footing in court should the industry sue, they cannot change the rules too much. That’s why I think it’ll be 10, 14, and 48 hour reset. One thing, though, apparently, FMCSA is determined to make good on their deal with Joan Claybrook, and have declared the rule will be out by July, 2010. This means these new rules will probably be enforced by the beginning of 2011.
I know many of you have been just trying to keep the lights on, but this is a major regulatory tsunami which is going to hit in 2011. It is true this is being pushed by a Democrat Administration, and Democrat organizations such as Public Citizen and the Teamsters. However, I can’t say this would be any different under a Republican Congress. The Republicans had the Congress when the rules were changed in 2003, and rather than pass a law cementing them into place, they did nothing, allowing the Democrats to pick them apart with legal challenges. I doubt it would be any different in 2011 under a GOP Congress, if that were to happen.
No, the rules are definitely going to be more restrictive, and your profits will be even smaller. It’s just a matter of how bad it’s going to be.
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Eric Arnold is a Former Enforcement Agent with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and a leading expert on USDOT compliance for small businesses. Do you have a question for Eric Arnold? Email him at eric@arnoldsafety.com.
Arnold Safety simplifies D.O.T. Compliance for commercial vehicle operators. Get Eric Arnold’s USDOT Compliance Guide, DVD, & Regulations at ArnoldSafety.Com.
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