{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://baird.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=288", "Baird Disappointed as FMCSA Denies Farmers, Ranchers\u2019 Commonsense Petition", "2022-11-30", "2022", "2022-11", "Republican", "House", "IN", "James R. Baird", "B001307", "baird.house.gov", "baird", "https://baird.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2013 Today, Congressman Jim Baird (IN, 04) released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Transportation\u2019s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) denied Ag groups\u2019 petition for exemption:\n\n\u201cFor the last two years, our farmers and ranchers have endured supply chain disruptions and soaring inflation rates driving up costs, yet the FMCSA\u2019s decision to ignore our producers by denying this commonsense petition to exempt truck drivers transporting agricultural commodities from federal mandates limiting the hours a driver can be on the job will only make their work more difficult,\u201d said Congressman Baird. \u201cTransporting livestock and other agricultural commodities is a challenging task that requires flexibility; we simply cannot apply a one-size-fits-all policy to an area that necessitates a more nuanced approach.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nYesterday, the Department of Transportation\u2019s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) denied the joint application from the National Cattlemen\u2019s Beef Association, Livestock Marketing Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, American Beekeeping Federation, American Honey Producers Association, and National Aquaculture Association requesting an exemption for drivers transporting agricultural commodities from federal mandates which limit the hours a driver can be on the job. Specifically, the applicants requested approval for drivers, after 10 consecutive hours off duty, to drive through the 16th consecutive hour after coming on duty, and to drive a total of 15 hours during that 16-hour period.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T03:24:37Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://baird.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=288"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7687113247811794, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}