Governor Bill Haslam has issued an executive order to ease restrictions on trucks hauling hay in response to drought conditions.
Haslam said in a news release Tuesday that the order will allow haulers to move hay across Tennessee, so farmers can feed their livestock during the drought.
The order will increase the height and width of hay trailer loads during daylight hours on Tennessee highways. The increase in width will allow haulers to move standard round hay bales side by side, which will increase the capacity hauled per truck without a special permit.
Tennessee has ranked fifth in the nation in hay production. The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service predicted Tennessee will produce nearly 4 million tons of hay in 2016.
The executive order has been scheduled to expire on January 31, 2017.
