In just over a week, some livestock haulers will have to switch to a new electronic logging device or ELD, when traveling with their animals. It’s a new requirement that’s left many locals involved in the livestock industry wondering if those laws apply to them.
Sergeant Kirby Stailey, supervisor in the Indiana State Police with the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, said the requirement, which will go into effect on Dec. 18, doesn’t change much for those who aren’t already charged with keeping a log book.
“For farmers, if they stay within a 150-air-mile radius, who don’t already keep a paper log this doesn’t change anything,” Stailey said. “They will not have to go to an electronic logging device. If they drive over 150-air-miles and they are involved with interstate commerce, in other words it’s not a personal use or a personal conveyance-type scenario, they do (have to use an electronic log).”
Trailers under certain weight limits are also exempt from using the electronic devices. Those weight limits are calculated with the weight of the trailer plus its contents.
Stailey said trailers over 10,001 lbs. would be considered commercial enterprise.
“If you’re involved in what would be considered interstate commerce and you are over 10,001 lbs., either by actual weight or by the gross weight of the vehicle, then you would be considered a commercial enterprise,” he said, adding there are exemptions for those traveling under a certain amount of days.
“Let’s say that in a 30-day period, they only go outside of the 150-air-mile radius eight days or less, those folks are also exempt from ELD requirements,” said Stailey, adding it’s eight days in a 30-day period not in a calendar month. “So if it’s Dec. 15 to Jan. 15, then that is a 30-day period. As long as they don’t exceed the eight days outside of the 150-air-mile radius then they would not have to keep an electronic logging device.”
But you still might have to log hours a different way even if you stay under that limit.
“People that do go out of the 150-air-mile radius but under that eight days, that does not keep you from having to keep a paper log book,” Stailey said.
But the intent behind the travel will also make a difference for those hauling their livestock.
“Now, what you are using that (the trailer and animals) for is going to depend on whether you fall in the book (Federal Motor Carrier Regulations),” Stailey said. “If I’m going to Colorado to go trail riding with three horses then I’m not an interstate commerce. I’m using that for a personal use, it’s not for making money. So your intent there determines whether you fall under the book or not on scenarios like that.”
If it’s a business and the intent is to make money, Stailey said, it’s considered interstate commerce.
“If they go to pick up a horse in Missouri because they enjoy riding horses then it’s not an interstate commerce scenario,” he said. “If it is just for hobby or recreation and they are not making any money or competing trying to make money, then it would just be a hobby and they wouldn’t have to worry about it.”
However, Stailey said if someone is competing for monetary prizes and those prizes are on their taxes and if they are showing profit or loss or receive monetary sponsorship, it’s a different story.
“Now that doesn’t mean just a sticker on the side of their horse trailer from the feed store or whoever sponsors them but they actually accept monetary support that they would write on their taxes, then they are in interstate commerce,” Stailey said. “Again, if they are involved in eight days or less in any 30-day period that still exempts them from the ELD requirement but they would still have to keep a paper log book.”
The new law might be a bit hard to enforce.
“We are limited at roadside as to what we can prove,” Stailey said. “Like the exemption to the ELDs days, that becomes hard to prove because if you stop someone on the side of the road and they tell you ‘Hey, I only went out of the 150-air-mile radius six days in the last 30 days.’ Then how are we going to prove that? It’s difficult for us to do.”
But they do have some ways to help keep track.
“So let’s say that someone had been previously inspected,” Stailey said. “We do have ways to see that they were previously stopped and inspected. But, overall, it is difficult to prove on some of these scenarios.”
For people still questioning where they fall under these new ELD laws Stailey has a recommendation.
“We would recommend if they fall into any ELD category they should get in contact with our Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division and we can walk them through some of the requirements of what they have to have,” Stailey said. “Or they can get onto the FMCSA website under ELD to get a ton of good information on there for the requirements and what people are suppose to do.”