FMCSA Extends and Expands COVID-19 Emergency Declaration

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has extended and expanded its emergency declaration that was set to expire on April 12.  The expanded declaration extends the exemption for motor carriers and drivers from Parts 390 through 399 of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations in order to provide hours-of-service regulatory relief for those motor carriers and drivers carrying certain categories of freight to May 15.  The expanded declaration also adds a category of freight that now qualifies for the exemption: “liquefied gases to be used in refrigeration or cooling systems.”  The original categories can be found in our previous alert on the topic.  You can read FMCSA’s expanded declaration  here.  Remember, if you are dealing with a shipment that you believe qualifies for the exemption, best practice would be to have the shipper or customer provide a written statement identifying the load as an emergency shipment for one of the reasons enumerated in the declaration.  If the shipper is unwilling to do so, do not try and convince them otherwise.'

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VORYS COVID-19 TASK FORCE

Vorys attorneys and professionals are counseling our clients in the myriad issues related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.  We have also established a comprehensive COVID-19 Task Force, which includes attorneys with deep experience in the niche disciplines that we have been and expect to continue receiving questions regarding coronavirus. Learn more and see the latest updates from the task force at vorys.com/coronavirus.