"Legitimate Reason"

Amid the political tug-of-war over hours of service, the American Trucking Associations wants to enlist the involvement of the Office of Management and Budget. In a Nov. 15 letter to the OMB, ATA president and CEO Bill Graves asked the agency to determine if there is a “legitimate reason” for the Obama Administration’s push for a stricter hours-of-service-rule.

Specifically, Graves points to recently unveiled data that reveals historically low rates of truck-related crashes. "This data, in terms of both numbers and rates, is overwhelmingly positive, is a clear indication how well trucking is performing while operating under the current HOS rules, and further demonstrates FMCSA has no evidence of a safety problem with the current rules” he wrote.

We’ll keep you advised on further developments. In the meantime, here’s wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!