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September 29, 2000 9:10 AM, EDT

Congress recessed Thursday afternoon without formally agreeing to a transportation funding bill, and that puts off until next week further action on a deal that prevents any changes in federal rules on truck drivers’ hours through Sept. 30, 2001.

	More HOS Coverage
	Reports Grow of Deal on Trucker Hours Plan (Sept. 27) White House: HOS Ban Unacceptable (Sept. 15) Opinion: Prescription for Hours of Service (Sept. 11) Hours of Service Awaits Return of Congress (Sept. 5)
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The tentative deal already reached between House-Senate conferees, with the backing of the Clinton administration, would prevent the Department of Transportation from implementing its proposal to curb trucker hours of service during the next fiscal year.

However, it would not ban DOT from spending money on its rulemaking process, as the Senate bill would have done. Various interested parties have said the DOT proposal would likely be overhauled in the year ahead.

Stopping the DOT hours reform from taking effect has been a prime goal of the trucking industry, which said it would sharply push up operating costs and actually add to highway congestion by requiring more trucks and drivers to haul the same amount of freight. DOT officials and other backers of reform have said curbing trucker hours would reduce driver fatigue and thereby prevent accidents.