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DRIVE Act Legislation Introduced
A few weeks ago on May 02, 2023, Congressman Josh Brecheen (R-OK) introduced the Deregulating Restrictions on Interstate Vehicles and Eighteen-Wheelers (DRIVE) Act. The act is Co-sponsors include Representatives Pete Sessions (R-Texas), Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado), Scott Perry (R-Pennsylvania), Eric Burlison (R-Missouri), John Moolenaar (R-Michigan), and Matt Rosendale (R-Montana). The bill has been referred to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit.
This bill would not allow the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to create and put into effect and rule or regulation that would require any vehicle over 26,000 pounds the is used for interstate commerce from having to have a speed limit-device installed to limit maximum speed.
Rep Brecheen in a statement said “This overreach by the Biden Administration has the potential to negatively impact all facets of the agricultural and trucking industries," said Brecheen. "I know from experience driving a semi while hauling equipment, and years spent hauling livestock, that the flow of traffic set by state law is critical for safety instead of an arbitrary one-size-fits-all speed limit imposed by some bureaucrat sitting at his desk in Washington, D.C. This rule will add one more needless burden and Congress must stop it. For example, if a rancher is transporting cattle in a trailer across state lines, under this rule, the federal government would require a speed limiter device when above 26,000 lbs. Out-of-control bureaucrats are trying to impose ridiculous regulations on Americans who are trying to make ends meet.”
Within the industry reactions to the legislation is mixed:
· The American Trucking Association (ATA) supports the use of speed limiters in all class 7 and 8 with the maximum limit set to 65 or 70 miles per hour.
· Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) does not support speed limiters because in some cases will affect the flow of traffic since vehicles will be travelling at different speeds and leads to more crashes.
· Other organizations that support the DRIVE Act and do not support speed limiters are the American Farm Bureau Federation, National Cattlemen's Beef Association, United States Cattlemen’s Association, Western States Trucking Association, Livestock Marketing Association, National Association of Small Trucking Companies, and Towing and Recovery Association of America.
You can follow this bill here: US Congress Bill DRIVE Act
The topic of speed limiters was discussed in early April 2023 at the FMCSA’s annual Analysis, Research and Technology (ART) Forum. You can find our notes on this Forum in one of our blogs here: Blog on FMCSA Analysis, Research and Technology (ART) Forum
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