Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/625735
14 commercial carrier journal | january 2016 journal news to $16,000 from the proposed version's $11,000, and (2) changing the definition of what constitutes coercion. Increasing fines: FMCSA said the new maximum fine of $16,000 stems from commenters saying the $11,000 was too small and from a 1996 federal collections act that stipulated the maximum figure based on inflationary adjustments. Some commenters, however, called for even more severe fines, such as sus- pending operating authority of violators. FMCSA, in response, said it "will take aggressive action" against coercion rule offenders, which "may include initiation of a proceeding to revoke the operating authority" of carriers discovered to have coerced drivers, citing its 2013-instituted increase in authority to shut down car- riers. All fines collected in coercion enforce- ment instances will go to the Highway Trust Fund rather than paid to drivers. The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration would be responsible for pursuing driver col- lections in such cases, FMCSA says. "Coercion" definition, carrier/ship- per knowledge, driver documentation: Following concerns over the "known or should have known" language in the rule's proposed version – which essentially put the onus on ship- pers, brokers and carriers to know whether a driver would be violat- ing federal safety rules by operating his/her vehicle – FMCSA struck that text from the final rule. "The revised defi- nition of coercion adopted in this final rule eliminates" that standard, the agency says, instead "emphasizing more strongly the driver's duty to object as a predicate for any subsequent allegation of coercion." FMCSA also expanded the definition of coercion to include more than threats of lost miles, pay or loads, adding the more open-ended phrase "take or permit any adverse employment action." The agency also added a clause saying drivers must state "at least generally" which rules he or she would be violating by giving into a coercion attempt. Broker groups such as the Transportation Intermediaries Association, along with ATA, had asked FMCSA to require drivers to specifically identify the regulations they would be violating. The groups also asked FMCSA to require drivers to document their objec- tions in "a contemporaneous writing" – another suggestion the U.S. Department of Transportation said went too far. The agency did say, however, that "it would be in the driver's best interests to docu- ment [coercion attempts] as soon as practicable." – James Jaillet and Todd Dills Continued from page 10 Rule would require CMV passengers to buckle up T he Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is seeking public comment on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking requiring passengers rid- ing in property-carrying commercial motor vehicles to use safety belts. Federal rules already require all commercial drivers to use safety belts, but there's no rule in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations requiring passengers to wear them. FMCSA said the latest proposal would hold both trucking companies and drivers responsible for ensuring that any passenger rid- ing in the truck cab also buckles up. The rulemaking responds to an October 2013 petition submitted by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance that requested all occupants in a property-carrying CMV be required to restrain themselves while the vehicle is being driven. About 275 occupants of large trucks killed in crashes in 2013 were not wearing their safety belts, according to the most recently available data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. FMCSA was accepting comments on the proposed rule through Jan. 25. Go to regulations.gov and search FMCSA-2015-0396. – Staff reports The rule would hold both trucking compa- nies and commercial drivers responsible for ensuring that any passenger riding in the truck cab also buckles up. A final version of the electronic logs rule will take effect two years after publication. The rule prohibiting driver coercion takes effect next month.