In 2011, President Barack Obama directed federal agencies to reduce outdated, ineffective or overly burdensome rules on the private sector. He challenged us to do better by America's businesses -- to cut red tape and waste -- and today, the Department of Transportation is delivering big on that challenge with a new rule that eliminates unnecessary paperwork for our nation's trucking industry without compromising safety.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's (FMCSA) new No-Defect DVIR Rule means that truck drivers whose pre- and post-trip inspections turn up no equipment issues or safety concerns no longer need to file a report. The new rule will result in $1.7 billion dollars annually in time saved.
The FMCSA estimates that professional truck drivers spend approximately 46.7 million hours each year completing driver vehicle inspection reports (DVIRs), even when they have no safety defects or mechanical problems to report. That means that, for 95% of their inspections, drivers have been spending their valuable time filing unnecessary reports, which -- until this new rule -- accounted for the 19th-highest paperwork burden across all federal agencies.
We think it's time to relieve them of that burden.
America's truckers should be able to focus more on getting their goods safely to store shelves, construction sites or wherever they need to be instead of spending countless hours on unnecessary paperwork.
During my confirmation hearing, I pledged to act on the president's unprecedented call to cut red tape and waste, and today, DoT is proud to move the ball further toward that goal. I am proud that our achievement marks the Obama administration's largest paperwork reduction since the Regulatory Review and Reform initiative was announced. And we are not going to stop now.
This is a far better way to do business.
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