The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced Wednesday that it is issuing a 90-day temporary waiver from the electronic logging device (ELD) rule to the agricultural industry.

The FMCSA will use this time to communicate with organizations within the agricultural industry to offer further assistance. It will also finalize its guidance on the agricultural 150 air-mile hours-of-service exemption and personal conveyance.

“We continue to see strong compliance rates across the country that improve weekly, but we are mindful of the unique work our agriculture community does and will use the following 90 days to ensure we publish more helpful guidance that all operators will benefit from,” says administrator Ray Martinez.

Although the FMCSA is offering this extended grace period to the agricultural industry, the new waiver overlooks the livestock industry.

In a statement issued on the same day the waiver was announced, the American Horse Council (AHC) pointed out this exclusion.

“It is important to note that this 90 days is an extension of the previous 90 days given to all agriculture commodity haulers,” according to the AHC. “This is not a final decision on the livestock specific ELD exemption request filed in September — a determination on that request is still to be made.”

The AHC states that it will continue to pursue an exemption for the livestock industry and will work with the FMCSA and the U.S. Department Of Transportation (DOT) to address the needs of the animal agriculture community to ensure that no consequences arise from the current ELD regulations.

The ELD rule will be fully enforced starting April 1st, 2018. The AHC encourages those with questions to contact them. You can also send your comments and concerns to the DOT by emailing agricultural@dot.gov.