The HELP Act is not just about livestock haulers but animal safety, according to NCBA

“It’s an animal health and safety deal to get those animals where they need to be in the quickest amount of time.”

The cattle industry continues its efforts to drum up support for the HELP Act.

The legislation aims to support livestock haulers by protecting drivers from what NCBA calls burdensome hours of service and electronic logging device mandates.

While NCBA says the act will support drivers, it also includes protections for the animals being transported.

According to Policy Division Chair Skye Krebs, “It’s an animal safety— health and safety issue. You get those animals on a truck, that truck needs to roll, and they need to get there. They can’t be stopping when they’re out of hours and having those livestock sit on those trucks, especially in your summer months and stuff. So, they need to get there. I mean the data shows that the livestock hauler safety record is the best of the industry— very, very few incidents. So, it’s an animal health and safety deal to get those animals where they need to be in the quickest amount of time.”

NCBA says that during the pandemic, haulers were granted additional flexibility on hours of service and electronic logging devices.
He says that proved livestock could be safely transported under those conditions.

Related Stories
Brooks York with Agri-Sompo discusses how this year’s pricing period played out and what it could mean for farmers heading into the end of the season.
An import lag for ground beef will likely look different than last year’s egg shortage. The difference comes down to biosecurity and market flexibility.
The WASDE/Crop Production combo will be the first full read on supply, demand, and yield that could move basis and hedging plans since the government shutdown more than a month ago.
China’s grain expansion model may be hitting its limit. Lower prices, high rents, and policy fatigue threaten future output — with ripple effects across global feed and oilseed markets.
High milk production and soft retail demand are squeezing prices and margins — making careful feed and risk management essential through year-end.
U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) shares his outlook on the developing U.S.-China Trade agreement, and the ongoing impact of the federal government shutdown—now stretching past four weeks—on rural communities and producers.