Emergency declarations and the regulatory relief that comes with these orders could soon see a change.
In a notice of proposed rulemaking published on Friday, Jan. 9, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration proposed revising the length of emergency relief automatically triggered by a declaration of emergency from 14 days to 30 days.
FMCSA said the proposal is in response to petitions for reconsideration of a final rule published in October 2023.
Those revisions narrowed the scope of the safety regulations from which relief is automatically provided when an emergency is declared. It limited the automatic exemption to 14 days of hours-of-service relief for eligible motor carriers and drivers.
The previous regulation provided a 30-day automatic exemption from all regulations in 49 CFR Parts 390-399. For local emergencies, limited to five days, this exemption covered only hours of service in sections 395.3 and 395.5.
OOIDA, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, the Montana Department of Transportation and the National Propane Gas Association were among the petitioners.
FMCSA said the majority of the petitions requested the agency reconsider the 14-day time limit, noting that it was too short.
“In our experience, the current 30-day period provides sufficient time to deliver emergency assistance without negatively impacting safety,” OOIDA wrote in 2023. “We are unclear on exactly why FMCSA is proposing these regulatory changes at this time.”
In January 2025, FMCSA notified all petitioners that it would reconsider the 14-day time limit.
The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, wildfires in the western U.S. and 2024 hurricanes in North Carolina were cited as instances when regulatory relief extended well beyond 14 days.
FMCSA said the costs associated with submitting, reviewing and approving emergency extension requests were also considered.
Comments on the rule change will be accepted through March 10. To submit a comment, click here or go to Regulations.gov and enter Docket No. FMCSA-2025-0124.
Active emergency declarations
As of Jan. 9, emergency orders were in effect in several states, including New York, Washington, Connecticut, Maine and Oregon.
Additionally, FMCSA regional emergencies were active for other states dealing with fuel shortages and severe winter weather. LL
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