Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, Dec. 12, 2019:
FMCSA officially delays provision requiring states to comply with drug/alcohol clearinghouse rule
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Thursday announced it has delayed the provision in the CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse rule that requires states to query the database before completing certain CDL transactions. However, the Jan. 6, 2020, compliance date remains in place for all other requirements of the Clearinghouse rule, including the requirement that fleets query the database for all new hires, as well as once a year for all existing drivers.
The Clearinghouse rule requires states to query the database before issuing, renewing, transferring or upgrading a CDL.
The notice, set to be published in the Federal Register Friday, Dec. 13, delays the compliance date for states from Jan. 6, 2020, until Jan. 6, 2023, says FMCSA.
FMCSA says the compliance date extension gives the agency the time it needs to work up a forthcoming rule to address how states will use driver-specific information from the database, as well as time to develop the information technology platform states will use to request and receive Clearinghouse information.
Truckers again set to haul ‘The Wall That Heals’ Vietnam memorial
The mobile Vietnam Veterans Memorial, The Wall That Heals, will once again tour the United States in partnership with the Truckload Carriers Association. The 25th tour of the three-quarter scale replica of the memorial will begin Feb. 20, in Marco Island, Florida, and will visit 35 communities during the year.
“The Wall That Heals mobile exhibit replicates The Wall experience in Washington, D.C. and provides veterans and their family members the chance to experience The Wall in their own community,” said Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund President and CEO Jim Knotts.
TCA is encouraging its member companies to support the effort. Those interested in transporting the memorial for the first time can sign up here beginning in January.
