Hours of Service of Drivers

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: FMCSA suspends enforcement of certain sections of the Agency's Hours of Service (HOS) rules as required by the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, enacted December 16, 2014. Specifically, FMCSA suspends the requirements regarding the restart of a driver's 60- or 70-hour limit that drivers were required to comply with beginning July 1, 2013. The restart provisions have no force or effect from the date of enactment of the Appropriations Act through the period of suspension, and such provisions are replaced with the previous restart provisions in effect on June 30, 2013. FMCSA provides this notice to motor carriers, commercial drivers, State Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program grant recipients and other law enforcement personnel of these immediate enforcement changes.

DATES: The suspension of enforcement of § 395.3(c) and (d) is effective as of 12:01 a.m. on December 16, 2014.

The U.S. Senate passed legislation last week that would extend approximately 50 tax credits and expenditures retroactively for the calendar year 2014.  H.R. 5771, the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014, passed by a 76 - 16 vote after the U.S. House of Representatives had passed the identical legislation late last week before leaving town for their recess.

President Obama is expected to sign the legislation into law. Congress has consistently extended most of these tax provisions every two years but failed to do so at this time last year, allowing them to expire on December 31, 2013.

H.R. 5771 does not extend any tax provisions into 2015 as the Republican majority of both chambers of Congress want to re-write tax policy and perhaps even make several provisions permanent in the future.  

The key provisions of H.R. 5771 that will impact MCM members include:

• Extension of Bonus Depreciation: This extends the 50 percent bonus depreciation option for nearly all business equipment placed into service during calendar 2014.

• Extension of Increased Expensing: This provision extends the full expensing of property placed into service by small businesses that were subject to the limitations in effect during years 2010 through 2013.

• Extension of 15 -Year Cost Recovery: This provision extends the improvements to real property, including motor carrier facilities, placed into service during 2014and allows for the accelerated 15 -year straight-line depreciation that has been used by businesses for the past several years.

• Extension of Fuel Tax Credit for Propane and Natural Gas: This provision extends the $0.50 per gallon credit for the business use of alternative fuels such as natural gas.

• Extension of Credit for Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling: This provision extends the 30 percent investment tax credit for alternative vehicle refueling property. The legislation also includes several other tax provisions that impact some GMTA members such as the exclusion of gains on small business stock, the continuation in the reduction of built-in gains to five years which occurred when traditional C - corporations were converted into S - corporations, as well as many others.

You may view the entire bill summary and its text by clicking here.

Filing of 4th quarter 2014 tax returns begins January 1, 2015.

File Early to Avoid the Rush!

Renewal Time is Almost Over! Important Change!

MDT has reviewed the IFTA decal process for the State of Montana. Starting with the 2015 renewal MDT will no longer charge the $2.00 per set of decals. Only one set of decals per vehicle may be requested.