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Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood sent a letter to Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) shortly after the freshman senator filed paperwork introducing an amendment to keep current hourof-service rules in place, urging her to drop the motion.

“The amendment would prevent the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration from applying the most comprehensive and up-to-date data and analysis to the issue of driver fatigue and allowable hours of service,” LaHood wrote.

“The final rule, if put in jeopardy, potentially undermines the entire regulatory process,” he said in his letter, dated Wednesday.

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the ranking Democrat of the subcommittee that crafted the transportation spending bill, agreed with LaHood.

“Sen. Murray opposes this amendment because it would erode [FMCSA’s] ability to prevent accidents and keep roads safe,” a Murray spokesman told TT.