Washington – The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will not be granting a compliance date extension for its hours-of-service final rule (.pdf file).

The Arlington, VA-based American Trucking Associations requested (.pdf file) that FMCSA delay the July 1, 2013, compliance date by three months following a court decision on its petition for review, which is expected sometime between mid-May and early June. ATA contends that FMCSA and enforcement agencies would be wasting time and resources if they begin training on the final rule in April and then the rule is changed by the court.

In a Feb. 22 letter to ATA President and CEO Bill Graves, FMCSA denied the request, stating it is “unwilling to sacrifice what may be several months of public safety benefits from the timely implementation of the rule.”

ATA maintains (.pdf file) that the court will side against FMCSA based on previous court decisions on HOS regulations.