Congress delays ELD enforcement for livestock to September 30, 2018.
AQHA is committed to keeping you up to date with the latest news regarding the ELD Mandate. For more press releases and information on this topic, visit www.aqha.com/membership/resources/eld-mandate/.
AQHA is concerned about the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) electronic logging device (ELD) mandate, which went into effect on December 18, 2017. The rule limits the amount of time a commercial truck driver can drive and mandates a specific amount of off-duty/non-driving time, and requires the use of electronic logging devices to track the driving and non-driving times.
Shortly after 12:30 a.m. on Friday, March 23, the United States Congress approved a massive $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill for fiscal year 2018 to fund federal government operations through September 30. The 2,232-page bill includes several regulatory measures that will provide flexibility for the horse industry, most notably H-2B visa cap relief for seasonal, guest workers and a temporary enforcement exemption for the transportation of livestock from the electronic logging device rule.
Congress Delays ELD Enforcement for Livestock to September 30
On the heels of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s March 13 issuance of an additional 90-day exemption from ELD enforcement requirements for livestock, the omnibus bill includes a provision that would defund enforcement to at least September 30, which is the official end of the fiscal year. The delay will provide DOT and industry stakeholders more time to educate livestock haulers on the proper scope of the ELD mandate, which has caused uncertainty since being finalized in late 2015. Furthermore, the industry’s September 2017 request to push back the compliance deadline by a full year is still outstanding, leaving the possibility of another enforcement delay for livestock haulers.