Fall is upon us and the weather has been glorious in New Jersey.  We hope you are enjoying this lovely time of year. This month we have a pinch hitter writing the first part of the Bits for Jean, (Jean still wrote the Cases section) so if things seems a little different you will know why.

In September we held our first open-session training on the CAB Basics and our new SALEs program. We were very pleased by the attendance and feedback.  Many of you have asked when the next sessions will be, and we are excited to announce that we will offer both sessions again in October. These are open to anyone and we would encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to learn about our new SALEs program and the CAB Basics. The SALEs training will be approximately 30 minutes and will demonstrate effective use of the system.  The CAB Basics will be an hour and will include an overview of our new features as well as a refresher of the features and navigation of the CAB website.  To register click on the following

October 16th at 3:00 p.m. EST CAB SALEs

October 17th at 3:00 p.m. EST CAB Basics

For those of you who will be attending TIDA’s annual seminar this year, we have a great training opportunity. CAB will be holding a subscriber training meeting prior to this year’s TIDA conference. On Wednesday November 13, 2013, from 3:30 PM – 5:00 P.M., prior to the Cocktail Reception, CAB will hold a hands-on training session on effective use of the CAB’s premier website to enhance claim handling.  This session is only open to CAB Subscribers and space is limited.  Please reserve your space here.

This month we report:

FMCSA RULEMAKING – There were a couple of actions by the FMCSA on the rulemaking front. First, the FMCSA along with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration changed the regulations to prohibit a driver of a commercial motor vehicle or of a motor vehicle transporting certain hazardous materials or certain agents or toxins from entering onto a highway-rail grade crossing unless there is sufficient space to drive completely through the grade crossing without stopping.  It is estimated that there are almost 20,000 grade crossings nationwide where this is an issue. The rulemaking is available here.

Second, The FMCSA is withdrawing its proposed rulemaking that proposed new entry-level driver training standards for CDL’s.  According to the FMCSA the rulemaking was withdrawn following the acknowledgement of substantive issues which have led the agency to conclude that it would be inappropriate to move forward with a final rule based on the proposal., and since the NPRM was published, FMCSA received statutory direction on the issue of entry level driver training from Congress via the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) reauthorization legislation and finally because the FMCSA tasked its Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee (MCSAC) to provide ideas the agency should consider in implementing the MAP-21 requirements.

NEW CARRIER AUDITS – The FMCSA is currently running a test program in California, Florida, Illinois, Montana and New York to perform many of its required new-entrant audits through the electronic submission of information rather than in person. Currently all new entrants need an initial audit within 18 months and MAP-21 will reduce that to 12 months. The test will continue through July 2014.

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Well here we are again, summer is at an end and the kids are heading back to school Where did the time go?  Long gone are the slow days of summer. We continue at the speed of light 24/7.

This month we report:

HOURS OF SERVICE – It would appear that after all these years, the Hours of Service rules are now set.  The final court decision can be viewed here …and the buzz is that the main opposition is now ending the battle. It has been many years, and many battles for these final rules to come into place.   The only change to the current rules relates to short haul drivers, who will not be subject to the 30-minute off-duty break requirement. FMCSA issued guidance stating that “effective immediately’ the agency will no longer enforce the 30-minute rest break on short-haul drivers. The agency is defining short-haul operations as those that operate in a 100 air-mile radius of the normal work reporting location and non-CDL drivers that operate within a 150 air-mile radius of the location where the driver reports for duty. Now that the rules are set, members of congress are pressing the Department of Transportation for a firm date to finish a field study on the newly revised 34-hour restart provision of the hours-of-service rule. The study was due before the new HOS rule became final on July 1 but it has not yet been released.

UNIFIED REGISTRATION SYSTEM – The FMCSA rulemaking has been released which amends its regulations to require interstate motor carriers, freight forwarders, brokers, intermodal equipment providers (IEPs), hazardous materials safety permit (HMSP) applicants, and cargo tank facilities under FMCSA jurisdiction to submit required registration and biennial update information to the Agency via a new electronic on-line Unified Registration System (URS). FMCSA establishes fees for the registration system, discloses the cumulative information to be collected in the URS, and provides a centralized cross-reference to existing safety and commercial regulations necessary for compliance with the registration requirements. The final rule implements statutory provisions in the ICC Termination Act of 1995 (ICCTA) and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, 2005 (SAFETEA-LU). The URS will streamline the registration process and serve as a clearinghouse and depository of information on, and identification of, motor carriers, brokers, freight forwarders, IEPs, HMSP applicants, and cargo tank facilities required to register with FMCSA.  The effective date of the rule is October 23, 2015 and can be viewed here in its full splendor.

CSA CHALLENGE – The Federal Court will hear arguments in September on whether the federal government followed the law in implementing and publicizing the new Compliance, Safety, Accountability program for trucking and bus company safety rankings. The Alliance for Safe, Efficient and Competitive Truck Transportation (ASECTT), a group of brokers, shippers and carriers, filed the lawsuit last year, contending that the FMCSA failed to follow the rulemaking process when it informed shippers and brokers to consider CSA scores when hiring carriers.  Argument is set for September 10.

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