The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) on July 14 proposed a two-year, limited exemption from the federal hours of service (HOS) regulations for the transportation of anhydrous ammonia from any distribution point to a local farm retailer or to the ultimate consumer, and from a local farm retailer to the ultimate consumer, as long as the transportation takes place within a 100 air-mile radius of the retail or wholesale distribution point.
The proposal, published in the Federal Register and flagged by the Pike & Fischer FR Today alert service, kicks off a 30-day public comment period. The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) and the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) both expressed support for the measure, although ARA said it doesn’t go far enough. Both organizations had been working with members of Congress and FMCSA to secure a permanent HOS exemption that would allow the pick-up and delivery of all farm supplies beyond the retail location.
The proposed two-year exemption comes after FMCSA on March 22 announced a limited 90-day waiver with the same provisions to facilitate the transportation of ammonia during the busy spring planting season. The 90-day waiver expired on June 21.
According to TFI, U.S. Reps. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) and Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.) sent a letter to FMCSA requesting a meeting in an effort to arrive at a permanent solution, including consideration of other farm supplies where there is limited retail storage, requiring truck drivers to transport products beyond the retail location. Following the meeting with FMCSA, a letter signed by 19 members of Congress was sent to FMCSA on July 9.
TFI said it is “collaborating with its members to provide recommendations and support for the two-year exemption.” ARA’s Richard Gupton told Green Markets that ARA appreciates FMCSA “at a minimum addressing this important issue,” but said the two-year exemption “falls short of meeting industry needs as all farm supplies should be covered per the statute that has been in place since 1995 and reaffirmed in the 2005 highway bill.”
In a July 14 alert to members, ARA said that because FMCSA failed to include all farm supplies in the HOS exemption extension, it believes “FMCSA continues to misinterpret Congressional intent of the agricultural exemption.” ARA urged members to submit comments in favor of the broader, permanent exemption. “We believe that if a clear argument is made for other farm supplies such as UAN, pesticides, propane, etc., we will have a better opportunity to include additional farm supplies into FMCSA’s proposed extension,” ARA said.
In the Federal Register notice, FMCSA said it has “long understood that limited farm storage capacity necessitates a ‘just in time’ delivery system from retail distributors of certain farm supplies to farms (or other locations where the farm supply product will be used) during the busy planting and harvesting seasons.” FMCSA said that its understanding of the HOS regulations has been that the exemption applies to the transportation of farm supplies from the local farm retailer to the ultimate consumer within a 100 air-mile radius, but does not extend to deliveries from wholesalers to either local farm retailers or farms.
FMCSA said, however, that this understanding “may not reflect today’s economic reality as it pertains to the transportation of anhydrous ammonia during planting and harvesting seasons. Like farms, local retailers have limited storage capacity and therefore must constantly replenish certain supplies during the planting and harvesting seasons. They are part of the ‘just in time’ distribution system that extends from a wholesaler to the ultimate consumer of the supplies.”
ARA said in its alert that “it is critical for industry to send in substantive comments as safety and enforcement groups will undoubtedly be submitting comments regarding safety concerns.” ARA noted that FMCSA’s Federal Register notice acknowledged “the strong safety record of agriculture movements utilizing the 100 air-mile ag exemption and the accident-free movement of anhydrous during the 90-day waiver.”
In April 2009, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance issued a press release saying the HOS agricultural and utility exemptions should be repealed because they have resulted in higher crash rates and are unsafe (GM May 4, 2009).
FMCSA said that it believes the two-year exemption “would likely achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be achieved absent such exemption, based on the terms and conditions imposed.” FMCSA said the proposed two-year exemption would not apply to drivers for motor carriers with “conditional” or “unsatisfactory” safety ratings, however.
Comments on the two-year extension are due on or before Aug. 13, 2010, and can be submitted by fax at 202-493-2251; online at http://www.regulations.gov; or by mail to Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, Room W-12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 20590-0001.
After the 30-day comment period, FMCSA will adjust the extension appropriately and issue a final proposal.