The United States Court of Appeals granted a 90 day stay of the effective date of its ruling vacating the 11- and 34-hour provisions of the current hours-of-service (HOS) regime. The decision paves the way for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to issue an Interim Final Rule (IFR) that includes the 11- and 34-hour requirements which would be in place while the agency considers the elements of the next HOS Final Rule. In a memorandum filed with the court, FMCSA stated it viewed the Court’s original decision as procedural in nature and not foreclosing the re-adoption of the 11- and 34-hour provisions if the agency corrected the procedural problems. Nothing about the Court’s recent ruling shows any concern with the agency’s stated course, according to the American Trucking Associations. Procedurally, once an IFR is issued, it will supersede the current HOS rules making the vacating of the 11- hour and 34- hour provisions in the current HOS rules moot when that takes place on December 27, 2007. The IFR, and its probable inclusion of the 11- and 34-hour provisions, would stay in place until the agency issues the next Final HOS, which according to the agency filing should be done within the next 12 months.
