Category: ELDs

You Need to Know About The Possible ELD Exemption for Small Carriers

Posted on June 7, 2018 by - eld exemptions, ELD Mandate, eld mandate exemptions, ELDs, electronic driver logs, electronic logging devices, electronic logs, electronic logs mandate exemptions, elogbook, express truck tax, expresstrucktax





You Need to Know About The Possible ELD Exemption for Small Carriers
(Update August 1, 2018)

On Wednesday the Senate passed a bill that exempts livestock haulers from ELD compliance until September 2019. The current legislation has two months to finalize 2019 appropriation packages.

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A bill filed in the U.S. House of Representatives on May 23, 2018, may bring ELD exemption for small carriers. If passed, carriers with 10 or fewer trucks will be exempt from the Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) electronic logging device mandate permanently. Here is what you need to know about the possible ELD exemption for small carriers.

You Need to Know About The Possible ELD Exemption for Small Carriers

The Small Carrier Electronic Logging Device Exemption Act of 2018 is sponsored by Representatives Collin Peterson (Dem-Minnesota) and Greg Glanforte (Rep-Montana). This is the first attempt to exempt small carriers and owner-operators from the ELD mandate specifically.

The Small Carrier Electronic Logging Device Exemption Act of 2018 would allow carriers with 10 or fewer trucks to use paper logs instead of the mandated electronic logging devices. For this piece of legislation to pass it will need to be approved by the House, Senate, and President Trump.



You Need to Know About The Possible ELD Exemption for Small CarriersRepresentatives Collin Peterson and Greg Glanforte also introduced a bill that would exempt drivers hauling agricultural commodities from the ELD mandate. Livestock drivers have received an ELD exemption until the end of September but will need to comply after this date. Agricultural truckers have only until June 19th to switch from paper to an electronic logbook.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) petitioned FMCSA in November to allow small business truckers to continue using paper logs until December 2022. However, the FMCSA has yet to issue a decision on the topic.

As this issue continues to develop, we will continue to deliver you the latest news and information in the trucking industry. Click here for additional blog content.

What You Need to Know About The ELD Exemptions

Posted on March 27, 2018 by - eld exemptions, ELD Mandate, eld mandate exemptions, ELDs, electronic driver logs, electronic logging devices, electronic logs, electronic logs mandate exemptions, elogbook

FMCSA Director Hears ELD Concerns at MATS

Trucking community concerned about the ELD mandate and ELD exemptions

During the Mid-America Trucking Show, commonly known as MATS 2018, federal regulators faced off against a standing-room-only crowd of owner-operators and other trucking veterans from across the nation.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Director of Enforcement and Compliance, Joseph DeLorenzo, hosted a seminar during the first day of MATS; here is what happened and what you need to know about the ELD Exemptions.

ELD Exemptions & Growing Concerns

Since the Electronic Logging Devices Mandate (ELDs) back in December, there has been growing concern among the trucking community. From older truck exemptions to confusion over the agricultural exemption, this hour-long seminar covered more than just type of ELD compliance.

Older Truck Exemption

Joseph DeLorenzo appeared before a crowd of leading trucking veterans from across the nation. The first wave of questions centered around the older truck exemption to which DeLorenzo stated that all pre-2000 engines are exempt. And this ELD exemption applies to all pre-2000 engines whether it came with the vehicle or if it was a replacement.

However, this exemption does not apply if the pre-2000 engines are rebuilt to a certain extent and should be relabeled. If you undergo a roadside inspection, the officer will check the engine tag to determine if your truck iasds exempt.

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) has issued guidance on this matter, according to DeLorenzo.

ELD AG Exemption

Is the transportation of all agricultural commodities exempt? This is a more difficult question that owner-operators and self-employed drivers put to DeLorenzo. To sum up his response, the federal definition is the rule of thumb regardless of the state definition of agriculture.

According to the federal government, ELD Ag exemption is considered the transportation of bees, livestock, unprocessed fruits, and vegetables. The exclusivity of the federal definition of agricultural commodities leaves several drivers concerned considering the ELD mandate.

Electronic Logging Device (ELD) Mandate

What should owner-operators and self-employed drivers know about ELD exemptionsUnder the ELD exemption, you don’t have to comply with new regulations if you don’t exceed 150-miles more than eight times in a 30-day period. Once you extend past this, you have 11 hours of driving time and 14 hours of off-duty time.

The 90-day waiver for federally defined agricultural commodities pushes the pause button on the ELD mandate. If you are transporting agricultural commodities as defined by the federal government, you will be covered under the ELD AG Exemption no matter how many time you exceed the 150-mile distance.

ELD Deadline

As drivers, you should already be aware that the deadline for complying with the ELD mandate is April 1st. If you are found without an electronic logging device, you will be cited and most likely ticketed if you cannot prove exemption.

After the April 1st ELD deadline, you will be placed out-of-service for 10 hours and then allowed to complete your run. However, you are required to install an ELD immediately before your next route. If you are later found without an ELD, you will receive an out-of-service violation under the ELD mandate.

We want to hear from you! Let us know your thoughts on the ELD mandate.

OOIDA’s ELD Appeal Was Rejected

Posted on June 23, 2017 by - DOT, ELD Benefits, ELD fight, ELD Mandate, ELD negatives, ELD resistance, ELD support, ELDs, OOIDA, OOIDA ELD Fight

No matter which side of the ELD (Electronic Logging Device) mandate you currently stand on, you should brace yourself to comply with the compliance mandate on December 18th, 2017. OOIDA’s appeal has been rejected so it might be time to prepare your truck and fleet to comply.

OOIDA Isn’t Left With Many Options

OOIDA or the Owner-Operators Independent Drivers Association has been trying to fight the DOT to put a stop to the ELD mandate for years now on the grounds that they violate the rights of drivers and their constitutional protection against unreasonable searches and seizures because the rule fails to meet the congresses stipulation for the mandate.

However, the supreme court has refused to hear OOIDAs lawsuit appeal against the DOT rule that will require truckers to use ELDs to track hours of service. Therefore the December 18th, 2017 compliance deadline will remain intact for now.

Although, this doesn’t mean that OOIDA is giving up their fight. They will continue pushing the matter to Congress and the Trump Administration because they highly favor the 4th amendment which protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures.

A Little About The ELD Mandate…

To put it simply, an ELD is an electronic logging device that connects directly to a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) to record the driver’s hours of service. This will make it more difficult to bend the rules and go over the driving limit of 11 hours per day since paper logs and electronic driver logs can easily be faked.

The data that an ELD captures is from the engine including movement, the number of miles driven, location, and hours.

The potential benefits of ELDs for fleets include saving time and saving money as they reduce the amount of paperwork that will need to be processed by eliminating paper logs. However, the benefits for the entire trucking community include saving lives.

FMCSA the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration estimates that 26 lives will be saved and over 1,800 vehicle crashes will be prevented annually because ELDs will reduce driver fatigue by more heavily enforcing compliance to hours of service regulations. 

However, many drivers have concerns about ELDs and do not want them. For example, will drivers and owners of smaller fleets be able to incur the costs of installing these devices in their vehicles?

Plus, they’ll be mounted on the dashboard, taking up valuable space and visibility. Will ELDs actually be dangerous by blocking a part of the driver’s view of the road? Also, will it be distracting?

One major concern is that ELDs will violate the driver’s privacy by recording their personal data. The guidelines as to what will protect the driver’s confidentiality when it comes to determining compliance with hours of service aren’t set in stone yet and that’s worrisome to a majority of drivers.

Are You Ready For The Mandate?

Whether you’re on board for ELDs or totally against them OOIDA has a tough fight ahead of them now. Even though they’ll continue fighting for the rights of truckers, the compliance deadline of December 18th will remain intact. Don’t let this deadline sneak up on you, be prepared to comply with the mandate.

For more trucking blogs visit ExpressTruckTax.com and please share your thoughts on the ELD mandate in the comment section below.

A Look At ELDs

Posted on March 31, 2017 by - ELDs, electronic driving logs, Electronic Logging Device, new truckers, rookie truckers, Trucker, trucker driver, truckers, veteran truckers

The trucking industry is a growing and changing business. Oftentimes new proposed rules and regulations come out in an attempt to improve the industry. Generally, people want to promote driver safety, health, and slash costs for those participating in the industry. However, sometimes these changes are met with great resistance from drivers. One example of this is the Electronic Logging Device Mandate.

Electronic Driving Devices

The Federal Electronic Logging Device or ELD Mandate is in full swing, meaning that all drivers keeping paper logs have to switch to an ELD by December 18th, 2017.

An ELD is a small device that connects to a truck’s engine in order to record the date, location, engine hours, vehicle miles, driver information, user authentication, vehicle, and motor carrier information. The device will keep detailed records of truck driver’s habits.

The purpose of ELDs is to accurately report a driver’s HOS or hours of service. The will let carriers know if truckers aren’t putting in enough driving hours or if they’re putting in too many. This way detailed electronic records can be kept to prevent drivers from running over their hours. Carriers will also be prevented from pushing their drivers to work over time.

A severe problem in the trucking industry is driving tired and fatigued. Driving tired is the equivalent of driving drunk and it’s very dangerous. ELDs will help to make sure that drivers get the rest they need.

The ELD Mandate does include measures to prevent ELDs from harassing drivers. Carriers can’t use them to interrupt a driver while they’re sleeping or to push a fatigued or ill driver into driving more hours. Harassment from carriers will be met with fees and penalties.

A few benefits include the fact that less paperwork will be required of drivers, and they won’t have to keep up with paper logs. Plus, ELDs will allow dispatchers to stay updated on their driver’s location, so they’ll have more accurate estimations as to when loads will be delivered.

So, Why don’t drivers like ELDs?

Truckers and fleet owners don’t want to incur the costs of installing ELDs in their rigs, even though prices have recently dropped. Some ELDs are as cheap as $150 and truckers have the option of using their smartphone or tablet as an ELD as long as they meet the requirements.

If they prevent drivers from going over HOS then truckers feel as if they’ll lose money and loads, because they won’t be able to deliver them on time. However, paper logs require you to round up 15 minutes, and ELDs don’t. With an ELD you can drive up to your very last minute for your HOS.

Drivers feel uncomfortable under heavy surveillance. They don’t want to be constantly watched. Even though ELDs only record driving habits, and don’t provide carriers with video or audio feeds, drivers still feel as if they will being monitored too closely.

No one wants to be bothered by notifications. While driving or sleeping, truckers don’t want their ELD to bother them to either drive more or to stop driving. The ELD Mandate has taken action to prevent the harassment of drivers by not allowing carriers to push them when they’re tired, or send them notifications when they sleep.

Also, most ELDS automatically know when to switch in and out of driving mode, based off of the engine’s activity. In order to prevent distracted driving, some ELDs don’t send out notifications until a few minutes after trucks have come to a stop.

What Do You Think?

Here at ExpressTruckTax, we want to know what you think about ELDs. Will they improve driver safety or will they just be a hassle? Please tell us what you think in the comment section below.