FMCSA to Hold Three Hours Roundtables

August 9, 2000 2:31 PM, EDT

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will hold three roundtable discussions in the Washington, D.C., area on the proposed hours-of-service rules, but safety and other groups greeted the news with some skepticism.

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“I think they better come to the roundtables with something concrete,“ said Daphne Izer, co-chairwoman of Parents Against Tired Truckers, based in Lisbon Falls, Maine.

She said FMCSA should arrive at the informal discussions with modifications to its rule showing that the agency incorporated the concerns raised by her groups and others.

“If they just plan to ask us to elaborate on what our concerns are, then I don’t think anyone will want to come,” Izer said.

A spokesman with the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance said it expects FMCSA to have moved beyond the public comment gathering process by the time the roundtables are convened.

FMCSA said the hearings are being held to persuade Congress not to cancel funding for the safety reform package in the appropriations bill. The roundtables are scheduled for late September and early October, meaning they could occur after Congress votes on the bill.