The US Supreme Court has declined to hear a legal challenge to the federal government’s electronic logging mandate, making it a near certainty the rule will take effect in December 2017, according to Fleet Owner magazine.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) had sought a review by the high court on numerous grounds, including that electronic logs violate the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution. This decision paves the way for the December 18 implementation date of the mandate from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to go forward.
This mandate calls for nearly all interstate commercial drivers to use ELDs to monitor hours of service. The Supreme Court did not make any statement in relation to its decision. The case is listed along with many others it decided against hearing.
“We are extremely disappointed that the Supreme Court does not see the merit in reviewing our case with so many questions about its constitutionality,” said Jim Johnston, president and CEO of OOIDA.
Johnston said OOIDA will continue to pursue the issue on the congressional side as part of its “Knock Out Bad Regs” campaign.
Chris Spear, president and CEO of American Trucking Associations, was pleased with the decision.
“We are pleased to see that the Supreme Court will not interfere with the implementation of this important—and congressionally mandated—safety rule,” he said. “We will continue to support FMCSA as they work toward the December deadline for electronic logging devices and urge them to provide certainty to the industry about when and how to comply with this rule by continuing to move toward implementing this regulation on schedule.”
