Thursday, April 26th the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) reauthorization 2018 bill passed through the House and included an amendment that will affect all within the trucking industry. The Denham-Cuellar-Costa Amendment simply know as the Denham Amendment has received very mixed reactions from those within the industry. Here is what you need to know about the Denham Amendment 2018.
What You Need To Know About The Denham Amendment 2018
Backed by House representatives Jeff Denham (R-Cali), Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), and Jim Costa (D-Cali) will standardize meal and rest breaks for truckers. The American Trucking Associations (ATA) believe that the amendment will streamline interstate commerce by further federalizing the hours-of-service rules and regulations. However, on the other end of the spectrum, you have the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), they believe the Denham Amendment is a threat to drivers fair pay and breaks.
What Does The Denham Amendment Mean?
Before we get into the current industry fight, we will review the facts about the Denham Amendment and how it will affect you. In summary, the amendment will prevent an individual state from setting their own rules and regulations. All drivers will need to abide by the Department of Transportation’s (DOTs) hours-of-service by federal law.
Under the current federal hours-of-service regulations, drivers are required to take a 20-minute break after driving for eight hours. This means drivers can now work longer hours without taking breaks and without violating state laws.
For example, California requires a 10-minute break for every four hours driven and a 30-minute meal break for every five working hours. The new hours-of-service will be enforced using a mandated Electronic Logging Device (ELD).
ATA Vs. OOIDA
So what do both parties want regarding the Denham Amendment:
- They want unified regulations that will not hamper interstate commerce.
- With the Denham Amendment ATA believes productivity will rise since drivers can continue driving to meet shipment times.
- This will cause less confusion when crossing into new jurisdictions.
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA):
- They believe this will deter drivers from taking much-needed breaks, potentially causing accidents and a decrease in productivity.
- Under the Denham Amendment drivers wages will be standardized as well because companies will not be required to meet state-imposed minimum wages.
We want to hear from you! Let us know your thought on the Denham Amendment. Do you like that the hours-of-service will be standardized between state lines or do you believe it will negatively affect your pay/breaks?