Section 4.12 - Exemptions and Exceptions(a) Exemptions to the adoptions in § 4.11 of this title (relating to General Applicability and Definitions) are made pursuant to Texas Transportation Code, §§ 644.052 - 644.054, and are adopted as follows:(1) Such regulations shall not apply to the vehicles detailed in subparagraphs (A) - (C) of this paragraph when operated intrastate:(A) a vehicle used in oil or water well servicing or drilling which is constructed as a machine consisting in general of a mast, an engine for power, a draw works, and a chassis permanently constructed or assembled for such purpose or purposes;(B) a mobile crane which is an unladen, self-propelled vehicle constructed as a machine used to raise, shift, or lower weights; or(C) a vehicle transporting seed cotton.(2) The provisions of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.3 shall not apply to intrastate commerce. Drivers in intrastate commerce will be permitted to drive 12 hours following 8 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers in intrastate commerce may not drive after having been on duty 15 hours, following 8 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers in intrastate commerce violating the 12 or 15 hour limits provided in this paragraph shall be placed out-of-service for 8 consecutive hours. Drivers of vehicles operating in intrastate commerce shall be permitted to accumulate the equivalent of 8 consecutive hours off duty by taking a combination of at least 8 consecutive hours off duty and sleeper berth time; or by taking two periods of rest in the sleeper berth, providing:(A) neither rest period in the sleeper berth is shorter than 2 hours duration;(B) the driving time in the period immediately before and after each rest period in the sleeper berth, when added together, does not exceed 12 hours;(C) the on duty time in the period immediately before and after each rest period in the sleeper berth, when added together, does not include any driving time after the 15th hour; and(D) the driver may not return to driving subject to the normal hours of service requirements in this subsection without taking at least 8 consecutive hours off duty, at least 8 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth, or a combination of at least 8 consecutive hours off duty and sleeper berth time.(3) Drivers in intrastate commerce who are not transporting placardable hazardous materials and were regularly employed in Texas as commercial vehicle drivers prior to August 28, 1989, are not required to meet the medical standards contained in the federal regulations.(A) For the purpose of enforcement of this regulation, those drivers who reached their 18th birthday on or after August 28, 1989, shall be required to meet all medical standards.(B) The exceptions contained in this paragraph shall not be deemed as an exemption from drug and alcohol testing requirements contained in Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 40 and Part 382.(4) The maintenance of a driver's record of duty status is not required if the vehicle is operated within a 150 air-mile radius of the driver's normal work reporting location if:(A) the driver returns to the normal work reporting location and is released from work within 14 consecutive hours;(B) the driver has at least 8 consecutive hours off duty separating each 14 hours on duty; and(C) the motor carrier that employs the driver maintains and retains for a period of 6 months true and accurate time and business records which include:(i) the time the driver reports for duty each day;(ii) the total number of hours the driver is on duty each day;(iii) the time the driver is released from duty each day; and(iv) the total time on duty for the preceding seven days in accordance with Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.8(j)(2) for drivers used for the first time or intermittently.(5) An electronic logging device (ELD) and an automatic on-board recording device have the meaning as defined in Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.2.(6) Unless otherwise exempted, a motor carrier operating commercial motor vehicles intrastate shall require each of its drivers to record the driver's record of duty status:(A) Using an ELD that meets the requirements of subpart B of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 395 ;(B) Using an automatic on-board recording device that meets the requirements of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.15; or(C) Manually, recorded as specified in Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.8. The record of duty status must be recorded in duplicate for each 24-hour period for which recording is required.(7) Unless otherwise exempted, a motor carrier operating commercial motor vehicles intrastate must install and require each of its drivers to use an ELD to record the driver's duty status in accordance with Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 395.(8) The provisions of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 395 shall not apply to drivers transporting agricultural commodities in intrastate commerce for agricultural purposes within a 150 air-mile radius from the source of the commodities or the distribution point for the farm supplies during planting and harvesting seasons.(b) Exceptions adopted by the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety not specified in Texas Transportation Code, § 644.053, are:(1)Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 393.86, requiring rear-end protection shall not be applicable provided the vehicle was manufactured prior to September 1, 1991 and is used solely in intrastate commerce.(2) Drivers of vehicles under this section operating in intrastate transportation shall not be permitted to drive after having worked and/or driven for 70 hours in any consecutive seven-day period. A driver may restart a consecutive seven-day period after taking 34 or more consecutive hours off-duty. Drivers in intrastate transportation violating the 70 hour limit provided in this paragraph will be placed out-of-service until no longer in violation.(3) For drivers of commercial motor vehicles operating in intrastate transportation and used exclusively in the transportation of oilfield equipment, including the stringing and picking up of pipe used in pipelines, and servicing of the field operations of the natural gas and oil industry, any period of 7 consecutive days may end with the beginning of any off-duty period of 24 or more successive hours.(4) For drivers of a commercial motor vehicle operating in intrastate transportation and used primarily in the transportation of construction materials and equipment, any period of 7 consecutive days may end with the beginning of any off-duty period of 24 or more successive hours. "Transportation of construction materials and equipment" has the meaning assigned by Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.2.(5) The provisions of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 391.11(b)(1) shall not apply to intrastate commerce. The minimum age for an intrastate driver shall be 18 years of age. Intrastate drivers in violation of this paragraph shall be placed out-of-service until no longer in violation.(6) The provisions of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 391.11(b)(2) shall not apply to intrastate commerce. An intrastate driver must have successfully passed the examination for a Texas Commercial Driver's License and be a minimum age of 18 years old.(7) Texas Transportation Code, § 547.401 and § 547.404, concerning brakes on trailers weighing 15,000 pounds gross weight or less take precedence over the brake requirements in the federal regulations for trailers of this gross weight specification unless the vehicle is required to meet the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 121 (Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations §571.121) applicable to the vehicle at the time it was manufactured.(8)Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 390.23 (Relief from Regulations), is adopted for intrastate motor carriers with the exceptions detailed in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph:(A)Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 390.23(a)(2) is not applicable to intrastate motor carriers making emergency residential deliveries of heating fuels or responding to a pipeline emergency, provided the carrier:(i) documents the type of emergency, the duration of the emergency, and the drivers utilized; and(ii) maintains the documentation on file for a minimum of six months. An emergency under this paragraph is one that if left unattended would result in immediate serious bodily harm, death, or substantial property damage but does not include routine requests to refill empty propane gas tanks.(B) The requirements of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 390.23(c)(1) and (2), for intrastate motor carriers shall be:(i) the driver has met the requirements of Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 644; and(ii) the driver has had at least eight consecutive hours off-duty when the driver has been on duty for 15 or more consecutive hours, or the driver has had at least 34 consecutive hours off duty when the driver has been on duty for more than 70 hours in seven consecutive days.(9) The provisions of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 380 (Subparts A - D) shall not apply to intrastate motor carriers and drivers.(10) In accordance with §4132 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETA-LU) (Pub. L. 109-59), the hours of service regulations in this subchapter are not applicable to utility service vehicles that operate in either interstate or intrastate commerce. Utility service vehicles are those vehicles operated by public utilities, as defined in the Public Utility Regulatory Act, the Gas Utility Regulatory Act, the Texas Water Code, Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, § 395.2, or other applicable regulations, and charged with the responsibility for maintaining essential services to the public to protect health and safety.(11) The United States Department of Transportation number requirements in Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 643 do not apply to vehicles/motor carriers operating exclusively in intrastate commerce and that are exempted from the requirements by Texas Transportation Code, § 643.002.(12) Drivers of vehicles under this section, operating in intrastate transportation, who encounter adverse driving conditions and cannot, because of those conditions, safely complete the run within the maximum driving time or duty time during which driving is permitted under subsection (a)(2) of this section, may drive and be permitted or required to drive a commercial motor vehicle for not more than two additional hours beyond the maximum allowable hours permitted under subsection (a)(2) of this section to complete that run or to reach a place offering safety for the occupants of the commercial motor vehicle and security for the commercial motor vehicle and its cargo. Adverse driving conditions mean snow, sleet, fog, or other adverse weather conditions, a highway covered with snow or ice, or unusual road and traffic conditions, none of which were apparent on the basis of information known to the driver immediately prior to beginning the duty day or immediately before beginning driving after a qualifying rest break or sleeper berth period, or a motor carrier immediately prior to dispatching the driver.37 Tex. Admin. Code § 4.12
The provisions of this §4.12 adopted to be effective March 9, 2004, 29 TexReg 2376; amended to be effective August 31, 2004, 29 TexReg 8375; amended to be effective January 4, 2005, 29 TexReg 12235; amended to be effective January 24, 2006, 31 TexReg 404; amended to be effective May 30, 2006, 31 TexReg 4442; amended to be effective October 1, 2006, 31 TexReg 8109; amended to be effective January 28, 2007, 32 TexReg 245; amended to be effective August 16, 2007, 32 TexReg 5034; amended to be effective February 25, 2010, 35 TexReg 1470; amended to be effective December 16, 2013, 38 TexReg9063; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 41, Number 39, September 23, 2016, TexReg 7511, eff. 9/28/2016; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 42, Number 11, March 17, 2017, TexReg 1257, eff. 3/20/2017; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 43, Number 41, October 12, 2018, TexReg 6846, eff. 10/16/2018; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 45, Number 13, March 27, 2020, TexReg 2208, eff. 4/1/2020; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 45, Number 41, October 9, 2020, TexReg 7271, eff. 10/13/2020; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 48, Number 01, January 6, 2023, TexReg 0051, eff. 1/8/2023; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 49, Number 42, October 18, 2024, TexReg 8474, eff. 10/23/2024