TPI’s Policy and Public Relations Consultant Jonathan Moore arranged a November 6, 2018, meeting with TPI and FMCSA officials at the U.S. Department of Transportation headquarters in Washington, DC. Photo by Casey Reynolds, PhD
or other designations that identify them as farm vehicles, are operated by the owner or operator of a farm or an employee or family member of that owner, are used to transport agricultural commodities, and are not used in for-hire motor carrier operations. Additionally, 49 CFR 390.5 provides exemptions for farm vehicles that are controlled and operated by a farmer as a private motor carrier of property transporting agricultural products, farm machinery, or farm supplies to or from a farm and are being used within 150 air-miles of the farmer’s farm.
While all of these regulations are quite clear, the current confusion among state and federal regulators, highway enforcement officials, and sod producers appears to be in how to define an agricultural commodity. Te current definition used for enforcement of transportation laws can be found in 49 CFR 395.2 which states as follows: Agricultural commodity means any agricultural commodity, nonprocessed food, feed, fiber, or livestock (including livestock as defined in sec. 602 of the Emergency Livestock Feed Assistance Act of 1988 [7 U.S.C. 1471] and insects).
During the question and answer period of an FMCSA National Training Center (NTC) webinar on June 28, 2018, someone asked if sod was considered to be an agricultural commodity and the response from
TPI Turf News January/February 2019
the presenters was no, sod is not considered to be an agricultural commodity. A state police officer responsible for commercial enforcement then reached out to FMCSA whose response confirmed that they do not currently consider sod an agricultural commodity and sod haulers are therefore subject to the full 49 CFR 395 Hours of Service regulations. Since this time, TPI members from at least four states have had issues with local enforcement and have contacted us for assistance.
Te primary issue to be addressed is sod’s lack of recognition as an agricultural commodity under 49 CFR 395.2. During an FMCSA listening session in Reno, Nevada, on Saturday, September 22, 2018, I asked FMCSA officials if their current definition of agricultural commodities was going to be clarified and they stated that the FMCSA is currently working with the USDA to further define this term. TPI is currently working with the FMCSA, USDA, state agricultural departments, and others to address this matter as well.
At the heart of our case are the many other instances in which federal and state branches of government recognize sod to be an agricultural commodity.
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