Special Edition V.40 (June 2020)
CORRECTED
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Hours-of-Service Changes to be Effective September 29, 2020
ATA
As reported back on May 14th, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has announced a Final Rule revising federal hours-of-service (HOS) requirements. FMCSA’s rule increases driver flexibilities and introduces modifications to the existing ruleset, including changes to the 30-minute break requirement, sleeper berth splits, adverse driving conditions, and revisions to the current short-haul exception.
Since the HOS Final Rule was
published in the Federal Register over the weekend, this means, the 120-day effective date begins counting down - making
September 29, 2020 the effective date for the rules.
The following four changes have been incorporated into this Final Rule:
Short-Haul Operations
- Extends drivers’ maximum on-duty period from 12 to 14 hours;
- Extends the air-mile radius within which the driver may operate from 100 air miles to 150 air miles.
Adverse Driving Conditions
- Modifies the adverse driving conditions exception by extending, by 2 hours, the maximum on-duty window during which driving is permitted;
30-Minute Break
- Requires a 30-minute break only when a driver has driven for a period of 8 hours without at least a 30-minute interruption. If required, the break may be satisfied by any non-driving period of 30 minutes, i.e. on-duty, off duty, or sleeper berth time.
Sleeper Berth Exception
- Allows drivers to split their required 10-hours off duty into two periods: an 8 and 2 split or a 7 and 3 split, either off duty or in the sleeper berth;
- Neither period counts against the driver’s 14-hour driving window.
ATA has produced an informative white paper on the changes that can be
found here.
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OSHA Revised Guidance for Recording COVID-19 Illnesses
ATA Dispatch
On May 19, OSHA
revised its April 10 interim guidance regarding the enforcement of the Agency’s injuries and illness recording requirement of COVID-19 cases. The most notable revision is the elimination of enforcement discretion in areas where there is ongoing community transmission of COVID-19, and where the ability of employers in specific industries to determine work-related transmission is difficult.
OSHA expects all employers to investigate employee COVID-19 illnesses to determine whether the illness is likely work-related, based on information reasonably available to the employer. If, after a reasonable and good faith inquiry, the employer cannot determine whether it is more likely than not that exposure in the workplace played a causal role concerning a particular case of COVID-19, the employer does not need to record that COVID-19 illness.
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MMTA Still Has Cloth Face Coverings
May 28, 2020
The Maine Emergency Management Agency, in coordination with FEMA, has provided the Maine trucking industry with 20,000 FREE cloth face coverings for distribution to companies and drivers. The masks are made by Hanes and, according to MEMA, are washable up to 50 times. MaineDOT delivered the masks yesterday and they are now ready for pickup/delivery.
In an effort to distribute the masks in an orderly fashion, we are asking members to fill out an
online form found HERE. You will be asked to select whether you want to pick up the masks at our Whitten Road office, or have us send them to you at your expense. Please allow us additional time if you want us to ship them to you as we anticipate heavy demand on these
FREE cloth face coverings.
Also note that we may limit quantities to ensure everyone who needs masks has an opportunity to receive them. We further understand that there may be an additional disbursement of free face coverings in the future, but recommend you place your order as soon as possible.
Disposable surgical masks are still available (we have a little over 1,000 left) for sale at $0.56/each plus tax and plus shipping if you want them delivered. For these masks,
order online here.
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MMTA Members Asked to Help Maine Kids in the Fight Against Hunger
May 28, 2020
The local non-profit, Full Plates Full Potential, is seeking immediate assistance in transporting vital meal packaging supplies to schools across the state. Though classrooms are closed due to the pandemic, school nutrition programs statewide continue to serve nearly 60,000 breakfasts and lunches five days a week to Maine children who might otherwise go hungry.
From York to Aroostook, Washington to Oxford – kids across Maine need our help. Packaging supplies are currently located in Augusta and are awaiting distribution throughout the state.
About Full Plates Full Potential:
As schools shut down during the COVID-19 emergency, around 80,000 Maine kids will struggle to access meals. Full Plates Full Potential has established an emergency fund to support any public school in Maine that closes due to the pandemic. These emergency funds will help schools pay for increased meals, packaging breakfast and lunch meals, transporting the food to eligible sites and more.
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Do You Use ZOOM? Update is Needed
May 21, 2020
The new business reality is that ZOOM has become a customary way to meet while social distancing recommendations have been in place. MMTA has used this service for Board meetings, committee meetings, staff collaboration and in our service on various boards and commissions. Likely, you have your own ZOOM account or you have connected to a ZOOM meeting, either with their app or through their website.
Effective immediately, ZOOM has enabled additional encryption across their platform to provide increased protection for meeting data. This functionality will require you to update ZOOM prior to May 30th. If you do not update your ZOOM before the end of May, the first time you go to use it in June it will force you to update it before you can join a ZOOM meeting, which may cause delays and frustration.
If you have not done so already, it is recommended that you update your ZOOM client by
clicking HERE.
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We will keep MMTA members posted as new information comes in. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to email
Tim,
Randy or
Brian if you have questions.
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THANK YOU MMTA ANNUAL SPONSORS
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Maine Motor Transport Association
P.O. Box 857
Augusta, ME 04332-0857
ph: (207)623-4128
fax: (207)623-4096
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