An extension of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s bird flu emergency was enacted on Friday, March 7.
The declaration providing certain regulatory relief for commercial motor vehicles supporting emergency relief efforts was first issued in early February following bird flu emergency orders in California, Iowa and Louisiana in December 2024 and January 2025. The extension keeps the order active through April 10.
FMCSA said the widespread loss of chicken flocks in the affected areas is impacting populations as well as the national food supply, including eggs.
Any motor carrier or driver operating under FMCSA’s declaration must adhere to the following:
- Before dispatch, the motor carrier must have a valid agreement from the receiving facility to accept delivery of the live chickens.
- The driver must not drive more than 16 hours in any 24-hour period.
- The driver must stop all driving at 12 a.m. (midnight) each day.
- The driver must take a minimum six-hour break in a sleeper berth before resuming any driving.
- The driver must use paper records of duty status (RODS) and supporting documents, maintain RODS and supporting documents for six months from the date the record is prepared and make RODS and supporting documents accessible to FMCSA and law enforcement upon request.
- The driver must maintain a valid commercial driver’s license and not be subject to an out-of-service order or loss of driving privileges.
Direct assistance terminates when a driver or commercial motor vehicle operates in interstate commerce to transport cargo or provide services that are not in support of emergency relief efforts, FMCSA said.
When a driver is moving from emergency relief efforts to normal operations, a 10-hour break is required if the total time a driver is engaged in emergency relief efforts, or in a combination of emergency relief and normal operations, equals or exceeds 14 hours.
Fighting the bird flu
U.S Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins recently detailed a “five-pronged” strategy to combat bird flu that included strengthening biosecurity, supporting farmers and ensuring affordable food prices.
CBS News reported the Department of Agriculture has paid more than $1 billion to egg producers since 2020 and will spend an additional $1 billion to address the nation’s bird flu issues. LL
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