I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3413 

To require a study and report by the Comptroller General regarding the 

restart provision of the Hours of Service Rules for Commercial Truck 

Drivers, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 30, 2013 

Mr. HANNA (for himself, Mr. RICE of South Carolina, and Mr. MICHAUD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To require a study and report by the Comptroller General 

regarding the restart provision of the Hours of Service 

Rules for Commercial Truck Drivers, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘True Understanding 

5 of the Economy and Safety Act’’ or the ‘‘TRUE Safety 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds that— 

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1 (1) the trucking industry is the backbone of the 

2 Nation’s economy, with nearly 7 million Americans 

3 working in trucking-related jobs, including more 

4 than 3 million commercial truck drivers; 

5 (2) 80 percent of all communities in the United 

6 States depend solely on trucks to deliver and supply 

7 their essential everyday commodities; 

8 (3) Federal regulations governing the hours of 

9 service for commercial truck drivers must be based 

10 on full and fair scientific research, analysis, and 

11 operational testing; 

12 (4) the restart rule that became effective on 

13 July 1, 2013, was based mainly on a one-month 

14 sleep study conducted in a laboratory setting; 

15 (5) the new restart rule will cost the trucking 

16 industry up to $376,000,000 annually, reducing pro17 ductivity, impacting driver pay, and increasing the 

18 cost to deliver goods; and 

19 (6) the restart rule should not have become ef20 fective prior to completion of the thorough oper21 ational study required by section 32301 of the Mov22 ing Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act or 

23 MAP–21 (Public Law 112–141; 126 Stat. 786). 

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1 SEC. 3. GAO ASSESSMENTS. 

2 (a) ASSESSMENT OF METHODOLOGY FOR MAP–21 

3 RESTART STUDY.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—After completion of the field 

5 study and submission of the report regarding such 

6 study by the Administrator of the Federal Motor 

7 Carrier Safety Administration, required by section 

8 32301 of MAP–21, the Comptroller General shall 

9 conduct an assessment of the methodology followed 

10 by the Secretary of Transportation in carrying out 

11 the efficacy of the restart rule published on Decem12 ber 27, 2011. 

13 (2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the assessment 

14 shall be to assess the extent to which the method15 ology meets the requirement of MAP–21 that— 

16 (A) the data collected is representative of 

17 the drivers subject to the restart rule; 

18 (B) the methodology is statistically valid; 

19 and 

20 (C) the study followed the plan for the 

21 ‘‘Scheduling and Fatigue Recovery Project’’ de22 veloped by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

23 Administration. 

24 (b) ASSESSMENT OF REGULATORY IMPACT ANAL25 YSIS.— 

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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

2 shall conduct an assessment of the Regulatory Im3 pact Analysis that accompanied the final rule pub4 lished by the Department of Transportation in the 

5 Federal Register on December 27, 2011, entitled 

6 ‘‘Hours of Service of Drivers’’ (76 Fed. Reg. 

7 81134). 

8 (2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the GAO as9 sessment shall be— 

10 (A) to conduct an analysis of the method11 ology and data used by the Federal Motor Car12 rier Safety Administration in its Regulatory Im13 pact Analysis; 

14 (B) to evaluate the validity and representa15 tiveness of the driver data used to evaluate the 

16 operational and economic impacts of the new 

17 34-hour restart rule applicable to operators of 

18 commercial motor vehicles; 

19 (C) to conduct an analysis of the data and 

20 methodology used to develop the proposed safe21 ty and health benefits of the new 34-hour re22 start rule applicable to operators of commercial 

23 motor vehicles; 

24 (D) to review the safety, health, cost, and 

25 operational implications of the restart rule, and 

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1 the potential impact of a greater number of 

2 commercial motor vehicles on major roads dur3 ing ‘‘morning commutes’’ as a result of the re4 start rule; and 

5 (E) review the research used in developing 

6 and justifying the new restart rule, particularly 

7 as it relates to the use of a laboratory test to 

8 justify the rule rather than an operational test 

9 in the field. 

10 (c) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

11 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

12 submit a final report to the appropriate committees of 

13 Congress on the assessments required under subsections 

14 (a) and (b), including any recommendations. 

15 SEC. 4. DELAY IN APPLICATION OF RULE. 

16 (a) DELAY IN APPLICATION OF RULE.—Effective as 

17 of the date of enactment of this Act, the restart rule pub18 lished by the Department of Transportation in the Federal 

19 Register on December 27, 2011, shall have no force or 

20 effect until 6 months after the study report required by 

21 this Act has been submitted to Congress. 

22 (b) APPLICATION OF PREVIOUS RULE PROVISION.— 

23 For the period specified under subsection (a), the 34-hour 

24 restart rule issued on April 28, 2003 (68 Fed. Reg. 

25 22456), shall be in effect. 

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1 (c) DECEMBER 2011 RULE.—The Secretary shall not 

2 apply the rule described in subsection (a) if the conclu3 sions of the operational study completed pursuant to 

4 MAP–21 do not support or concur with the conclusions 

5 of the laboratory study on which the rule was based. 

Æ 

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