Category: ELD

The 2019 DOT Funding Bill Advances in The U.S. Senate

Posted on June 12, 2018 by - ATA, Bill, ELD, ELD Mandate, express truck tax, expresstrucktax, faa, House, House DOT Bill, Insutry news, Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Senate, Senate DOT bill, truck regulations, trucking reform








The 2019 DOT Funding Bill Advances in The U.S. Senate

(Updated August 2, 2018)
Senate-passes transportation funding bill Aug. 1st.

Legislation approves $1 billion in infrastructure grants for the 2019 fiscal transportation measure including $154.2 billion package for the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Measure as passed 92-6.

The Senate bill would provide DOT with $26.6 billion in discretionary spending. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration would receive $667 million, and $50 million would be provided for improving safety of state-supported passenger rail service

The Federal transportation infrastructure, housing assistance, and community development spending bill was approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday, June 7 for $71.4 billion. The bill passed with a unanimous bipartisan support (31-0). So now that the 2019 DOT funding bill advances in the Senate here is what you need to know.

The 2019 DOT Funding Bill Advances in the Senate

The FY2019 Transportations, Housing and Urban Development, and Related (THUD) Appropriations Act unlike it’s House counterpart did not include trucking policy reform. This includes the proposed ELD waiver for livestock haulers and the controversial Denham Amendment.

The Denham Amendment backed by House representatives Jeff Denham (R-Cali), Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), and Jim Costa (D-Cali) would standardize meal and rest breaks for truckers. The proposed ELD waiver for livestock and insect haulers would have exempt drivers from the electronic logging device mandate until September 2019. However, the Senate called upon the DOT to “consult with Stakeholder, the Department of Agriculture and Congress on legislative solutions for drivers with unique working conditions.”

 

The 2019 DOT Funding Bill Advances in The U.S. SenateThe current DOT funding expires at the end of September however the Senate has not set a date for considering the bill. Once consideration begins in the Senate legislatures can add trucking reforms during the amendment process. The U.S. House has yet to bring the DOT appropriations bill to the floor as well.


If the two governing bodies pass a different version of the bill, the lawmakers will enter a conference committee to produce a finalized bill. This will then be passed again by the respective governing bodies. Any trucking reform that is attached would be subject to intense review during the committee process.

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Today Is The ELD Compliance Deadline

Posted on December 18, 2017 by - cvsa, ELD, ELD Compliance, ELD Compliance Deadline, ELD penalties, OOSC, Out Of Service Criteria, truck drivers, truckers

ExpressTruckTax goes over the ELD compliance deadline

Guess what day it is! You wife’s birthday? Well maybe. Your anniversary? If it is then we hope you’re prepared…But, actually, it’s the ELD compliance deadline day. We hope you have ELDs installed in your trucks or you could have some penalties to face.

While some truckers consider the ELD mandate to be positive, many drivers feel negatively towards it. Some drivers even said they would quit if the ELD mandate took place. However, all we can do today is wait see how it will affect the trucking industry.

Today Is The ELD Compliance Deadline

If you don’t have an ELD device yet, you might wanna go ahead and order one as soon as possible, even though there is a major shortage affecting the nation. Amil Freight has a great ELD/AOBRD device with instructional demos to teach you how to use it.

Now, you don’t need to worry if you don’t have an ELD today because the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) has given you a bit of time to comply with the mandate with their out-of-service-criteria (OOSC).

Under this criteria you have until April 1, 2018 to have an ELD device installed before you will be placed out of service. But this doesn’t mean you can get by without having an ELD until then.

Beginning today, December 18, roadside personal and inspectors will start checking vehicles for ELDS and reserve the right to issue expensive citations if you don’t have one. You could get away with a warning or you could get ticketed. It will all depend on who pulls you over and how lucky you are today.

Also, if you have a grandfathered AOBRD or automatic onboard recording device that was installed before today then you have until December 16, 2019 to switch to an ELD device. So, lucky you, enjoy your extra time.

ExpressTruckTax notes ELD benefits for truckers

ELDs are here today leaving us with two options. We can quit or look at the positives and we’re choosing to look at the positives because ELDs actually have some pretty good benefits. For example, they will reduce paperwork.

As a trucker with an ELD, you can say goodbye to your paper logbook because your ELD will automatically record your miles traveled per jurisdiction. You won’t have to record your odometer reading every time you cross a state line or manually record your trips by hand. Also, this information will make it easier to complete your IFTA return.

Then back at the office you and your secretary won’t have to spend hours processing and entering this information into a computer for HOS compliance because it will all be stored in one convenient location online.

Your dispatcher will also be able to track your rig live! This will allow them to provide instantly check calls, find a shop nearby if you break down, provide more accurate ETAs without distracting you, and more.

Do You Have Your ELD?

We hope you already have your ELD, but if you don’t you have a few months to get one before you will be placed out of service. Please let us know how this compliance deadline is affecting you and share your thoughts about the ELD mandate in the comment section below. Visit ExpressTruckTax for more trucking blogs.

Are You Joining Monday’s Anti-ELD Media Blitz?

Posted on December 1, 2017 by - Anti-ELD media blitz, Brian Babin, ELD, ELD Mandate, ELD protest, H.R. 3283 Bill, Madate Delay Bill, Trucker Rally

Part of the appeal of being a trucker is the freedom of the open road. Unlike other professionals, truckers are one with their rigs without a boss breathing down their neck 24/7. Heck, most even say they were born free and chose to be a trucker.

ExpressTruckTax asks if you are going the anti-ELD protest

Now many feel that with the upcoming ELD mandate that the freedom that trucking provides will be trampled upon. It’s viewed as a major violation of trucker’s rights and many have taken steps to protest it with no results so far. However, now truckers all across the nation are taking to the streets for a major anti-ELD protest on Monday, December 4th.

Monday’s Anti-ELD Protest

In order to attract the public’s attention to their cause, many truckers are taking to the streets to raise awareness about the impending ELD mandate coming on December 18th. The protest will begin at 9 A.M. local time and over 40 locations are planning to participate so far.

To find out where the ELD protest will be near your state, head to the ‘Monday Information’ group on Facebook. Many truckers in the group are organizing protests in their state, providing more information, and are even helping each other out with protest signs and online flyers.

A few of the protest locations include Bill’s Truck Stop in Linwood, NC, Shoemakers Ambest Truck Stop in Lincoln NE, 116th N. 7th St, Richmond, VA, and many more. Simply post in the group to ask where you can find a rally near you.

This protest is a part of the major ELD media blitz that’s been occurring online for quite some time now. Many protesters have been on Twitter with the ELD or ME campaign to gain attention for their cause. Many tweets and memes have been directed at Trump.

ExpresstruckTax notes that the anti-ELD protest is family friendly
The December 4th anti-ELD protest is noted as a family-friendly event. Truckers are encouraged to bring their kids. Santa will even be making appearances at some of the locations and taking photos with rigs is encouraged.

The purpose of this is to educate people on the importance of truckers and so they can learn about the role in their lives. This will also give drivers a chance to share how they feel ELDs will negatively affect them.

This protest is also to support the H.R. 3283 ELD mandate delay bill introduced by Texas Representative, Brian Babin. If the bill was enacted it would give truckers two extra years to comply with the mandate by pushing the deadline back to December 19th.

Also, in attempt to stop or delay the mandate Brian Babin asked Trump halt the ELD mandate by executive order. He specifically asked for the mandate to be delayed until April 1, 2018, as that’s when the CVSA (Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance) will begin enforcing their out-of-service criteria.

What Are Your Thoughts On The Anti-ELD Media Blitz?

We want your feedback. Will you be joining fellow truckers on December 4th to protest ELDs and over-regulation? Or do you think ELDs will financially benefit the trucking industry and make it a safer place? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below and visit ExpressTruckTax for more trucking blogs.