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The goal of the hours-of-service regulations is to keep drivers from operating commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) when fatigued. In an effort to monitor the number of hours drivers operate their CMV, a motor carrier must require drivers to record their duty status for each 24-hour period.
These requirements apply to drivers and motor carriers operating property-carrying and passenger-carrying commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce.
A CMV driver’s record of duty status (known as a “log”) must appear in a specific format depending on whether it is created manually (on paper or using a digital device) or using an electronic logging device (ELD). When recorded manually, the form used must include a vertical or horizontal graph grid along with the following information:
All entries must be legible and made by the driver, although certain entries may be pre-printed (such as motor carrier name and address). Throughout the day, the record must be kept current to the time shown for the last change of duty status. Making false entries on a log is considered a serious offense.
Drivers must submit the original record of duty status to their regularly-employing motor carrier within 13 days of completion. If drivers are used by more than one carrier during any 24-hour period, they must submit a copy of the record to each carrier.
Days off and vacation. Individuals who drive CMVs on a regular basis are expected to complete a log every day, even when they are off duty. A driver who is off duty for more than one consecutive day may use a single log to record the days off, by showing the range of dates and “off duty” on the graph grid.
Record retention. A motor carrier must keep its drivers’ records of duty status, along with all supporting documents, for six months from the date they are received. They may be kept at the principal place of business, a regional office, or the driver’s work-reporting location.
Drivers must carry a week’s worth of completed logs in the vehicle and make them available for inspection. Specifically, on any given day, a driver must have in their possession the in-progress log for that day plus completed logs from the prior seven consecutive days.
Log “books.” The regulations do not refer to log books, though logs are commonly sold in book format. Drivers must complete a single log per day, whether those logs are individual pages, bound into a book, or kept electronically.
ELDs. In general, drivers must use an ELD to record their duty status unless they are eligible for an exception. Such exceptions exist for (among others) drivers who:
Hawaii. Drivers in Hawaii are not required to keep a record of duty status as long as the motor carrier retains, for six months, records showing the total number of hours the driver is on duty each day and the time at which the driver reports for and is released from duty each day.