The agriculture industry received fantastic news today.  The US House and Senate came to an agreement on the highway transportation bill, called "Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21)."

 

Included in the bill is language that asserts the Hours of Service exception for the delivery of farm supplies and agricultural commodities.  This exception has been in jeopardy for the last several years particularly for delivery of agricultural inputs from wholesale points or terminals to the retail site.  For the past 2 years, our industry has been operating under a special waiver for the delivery of anhydrous ammonia from terminals to retail sites.  This waiver is set to expire in October 2012. 

 

Of great significance are two items in the MAP 21 language:  all farm supplies are once again included in the exception, meaning the transportation of other forms of fertilizer can now also utilize the exemption as can agrichemicals.  The exemption is also expanded to a 150 air mile radius from the distribution point, be it a retail or wholesale distribution point.  The radius was formerly 100 air miles.  The HOS exception is for planting and harvesting seasons as determined by each state.  In Illinois, IFCA worked with IDOT and the state legislature to establish a year-round definition for planting and harvesting (Jan 1 - Dec 31). 
 

This great news was made possible by many, many hours of hard work, research, fact finding and negotiation performed by the staff of The Fertilizer Institute, Ag Retailers Association, Agricultural Food Transporters, American Trucking Association and the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives.  There was hardly a more unified effort on behalf of national and state associations working with USDOT and with our congressional delegations to reaffirm the vital need for the HOS exception for agriculture. 

 

IFCA is very happy to bring you this great news and will keep you posted on the effective date of this federal development.  And as we always do we will work with Illinois DOT to ensure uniform enforcement and communication regarding this important provision.  A copy of the language that was included in MAP 21 is available on the IFCA website at www.ifca.com or click here http://ifca.com/media/Final%20HOS%20Language%20MAP%2021_001.jpg