trucking legislation

UCR Plan-Violating Carriers Subject to Large Fees, Officials Getting Ready to Collect

August 25, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

A strict three-tiered plan to help officials identify and contact unregistered motor carriers has been approved by the Unified Carrier Registration Plan’s Board of Directors. The 44,000 motor carriers that have still yet to register with this new plan have either been issued penalties for previous violations or have failed to pay outstanding fees.

The UCR Plan was implemented by Congress in 2005, which includes 41 participating states that have agreed to be part of the plan collecting fees from leasing companies, private carriers of property, motor carriers, freight forwarders, and brokers. For these participating states, the agreement also allows for the allocation of more than $100 million in safety enforcement program funds each year.

“Our motor carrier registration percentages from non-participating states historically lag well behind those of participating states for various reasons,” explained the UCR Plan’s executive director, Avelino Gutierrez. “First, since non-participating states do not register their own UCR-eligible motor carriers for UCR, the non-participating motor carrier will not be actively solicited to register for UCR by anyone in their state. Second, few non-participating states enforce UCR roadside, which is certainly another effective method of getting motor carriers to register on their own.”

Additionally, if non-participating states have domiciled motor carriers that have Department of Transportation numbers, those carriers must still register and pay the related fees. According to Gutierrez, the nine non-participating states have around 35,000 unregistered carriers themselves. The categories of carriers required to pay UCR fees do not include private carriers of passengers, although Mexico- and Canada-based carriers operating within the United States are in fact otherwise subject to the UCR plan agreement.

The current nine states not participating in the UCR program are: Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Wyoming, and the District of Columbia.

Commercial Motor Vehicle Alliance roadside inspectors have been checking the UCR registrations of carriers within participating states since 2013. Registration fees also align with the number of trucks within a carrier’s fleet–carriers with a fleet of over 1,000 need to pay $56,977 in annual fees, whereas carriers with only two trucks must pay $59 each year.

“We agree that great headway can be made if we contact those carriers in this pilot and attempt to register them,” Gutierrez explained. “So, the plan is to have one contractor full-time equivalent contact the motor carriers–about 50 a day–starting with those with the highest number of power units and moving to those with lower numbers of power units, to be more efficient in our return.”

A pilot project is in the works that would aim to help officials more easily contact motor carriers reporting a number of power units that is in contradiction with the number that is declared in their Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration form (MCS-150), which mandates brokers or carriers accurately define all aspects of their operations. However, three other pilots are the main focus of the UCR plan at this time, and none of these pilots would be geared toward freight forwarders or brokers.

All of these potential pilots will likely “be the first step of the board in taking action on the enforcement side of the registration equation,” Gutierrez added.

According to Gutierrez, the first pilot will focus upon raising nearly $450,000 in collections from just 20% of carriers that will be contacted–a violation that will likely cost around $85,000 for each contractor.

The next pilot estimates that more than 5,600 new carriers entering the industry in non-participating states have failed to register, although many of them may not yet understand that this kind of registration is indeed necessary. Collections from these failures to register will likely bring in around $383,000, Gutierrez estimates.

Thirdly, the next pilot will focus upon other motor carriers who have already been cited for failing to register. With 1,800 of these kinds of violations having already been issued in 2021, the UCR Plan estimates that around 3,500 total motor carriers may be in violation of registering by December.

$1 Trillion Infrastructure Improvement Bill Approved by Senate

August 21, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

In a 69-to-30 vote, senators have decided to approve the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act–legislation meant to help bring massive improvements to U.S. freight corridors, transit systems, and mobility networks.

The $1 trillion bill includes a variety of climate change and infrastructure improvement proposals from President Joe Biden’s “build back better” plan, and finally gained Senate approval this month. Around $550 billion in new funds will be allocated to bring long-needed boosts to a variety of transportation systems, tunnels, highways, and bridges through the new legislation, explained the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Additionally, around $100 billion of the package will be dedicated to specific road and bridge projects, $66 billion will be dedicated to freight and passenger rail programs, $65 billion will be dedicated to broadband internet improvements, $46 billion will be dedicated to climate change and severe weather resilience programs, $39 billion will be dedicated to specific transit improvement plans, and $25 billion will be dedicated to airport improvement efforts.

“Americans, and the hardworking men and women who carry this economy on trucks, have waited long enough for Washington to act on our decaying infrastructure,” said Chris Spear, American Trucking Associations President, one of many key industry stakeholders who have expressed their support in regards to this new bill.

“Today’s bipartisan vote on the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a testament to what we can achieve when we set politics aside and work together for the good of the country,” added Senator Rob Portman of Ohio in a recent tweet. “This historic bill is the result of months of negotiations between [Republicans and Democrats]. Bipartisanship works!”

Portman was one of the political leaders who helped to create the new legislation.

“It will be a lasting bipartisan achievement to help the people we represent,” he said. “It’s going to improve the lives of all Americans. It’s long-term spending to repair and replace and build assets that will last for decades. In doing so, it does make life better for people.”

Portman also made clear that he, along with other policymakers, considered the people throughout the country for whom this kind of funding would make life much easier.

“It improves the life of the mom or dad who commutes to work and gets stuck in rush hour every day, who would much rather be spending that time with their family,” he said. “It improves the lives of people who are tired of those potholes. We all want to fix those potholes. We all hate them.”

Additionally, the bill will set forth an apprenticeship program for truck drivers under the age of 21 entering the workforce to be able to cross state lines in their commercial motor vehicles as a way to ease the current truck driver shortage. It would also approve a truck-leasing task force initiative and require the secretary of transportation to find the best methods of implementing side-underride guards for commercial vehicles.

Through the legislation, mandates would be set in place requiring that automatic emergency braking systems be implemented in some commercial vehicles, and The U.S. Department of Transportation would also be required to thoroughly analyze electronic logging device efficiency.

Finally, the legislation would allow for the reauthorization of the premier federal highway law, which was set to expire at the end of next month.

“Strong, reliable infrastructure represents more than pipes and pavement,” noted Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona. “It represents the opportunities for Americans to visit loved ones, new businesses to open and compete globally, veterans to access tele-medicine, and children to learn in safe and effective ways.”

The bill will now move on to the House, where its projected outcome is not yet clear. The infrastructure package is expected to be explained in tandem with an overarching budget plan by Speaker Nancy Pelosi when she sets forth these plans’ legislative process.

House Transportation Chairman Peter DeFazio also plans to work on provision negotiations with the Senate, citing the passage of his recent multi-year highway policy update.

“I set out for several major objectives to rebuild America’s crumbling infrastructure, bring us into the 21st century, not do another iteration of the Eisenhower[-era] national highway program, but to actually begin to deal with current problems,” DeFazio explained.

Nitrogen Oxide Regulations Getting Major Upgrade from EPA

August 20, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

By the end of next year, new national emission standards will be finalized in an effort to reduce the amount of harmful air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions from heavy-duty trucks.

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced that starting in model year 2027, commercial motor vehicles will be subject to a series of significant rule-makings over the course of the next few years aiming to implement standards bringing a major reduction to the amount of nitrogen oxide pollution emitted from these trucks.

“This action will include an update of current greenhouse gas standards to capture market shifts to zero-emission technologies in certain segments of the heavy-duty vehicle sector,” said the EPA in a recent statement.

The current standard for nitrogen oxide pollution for on-highway, heavy-duty commercial motor vehicles is 0.20 grams per brake-horsepower-hour, and this particular standard for trucks and engines has not seen any changes for the last 20 years. In terms of its next standard, the specific target reduction in nitrogen oxide has not been made clear by EPA.

The agency’s new “Clean Trucks Plan” will aim to lower overall new heavy-duty vehicle emissions, including those emitted from commercial delivery trucks, buses, and long-haul tractors. This new rule will implement “more robust greenhouse gas emission standards” for all newly-manufactured heavy-duty commercial motor vehicles at least by the model year 2030, EPA has claimed.

“These new rules will be major steps toward improving air quality and addressing the climate crisis,” said the agency. Additionally, these regulations will help areas most in need of improved wellbeing, including many “overburdened and underserved communities,” as heavy-duty truck emission pollution is a major factor in poor health and air quality across the United States, EPA noted.

“Heavy-duty vehicles are the largest contributor–about 32%–to mobile source emissions of nitrogen oxide, which react in the atmosphere to form ozone and particulate matter,” explained the agency in its statement. “These pollutants are linked to respiratory and/or cardiovascular problems and other adverse health impacts that lead to increased medication use, hospital admissions, emergency department visits, and premature deaths.”

EPA has been under pressure by a variety of both local and state agencies throughout the nation urging the agency to find ways to largely reduce nitrogen oxide emissions from big-rigs, as many officials from these agencies are seeing poor health in their own areas due to low air quality and pollution.

“Such reductions are a critical part of many areas’ strategies to attain and maintain the health-based air quality standards, and to ensure that all communities benefit from improvements in air quality,” said EPA.

This month, President Joe Biden also signed an executive order mandating that at least half of all light-duty commercial motor vehicles be electric by 2030 in an effort to further reduce nitrogen oxide emissions.

“We’re looking forward to continuing our discussions to educate and help form the next round of low nitrogen oxide standards,” said American Trucking Associations’ energy and environmental counsel, Glen Kedzie. “Likewise, ATA stands ready to be engaged with both EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the establishment of the next round of truck greenhouse gas and fuel-efficiency standards.”

Organizations across the country will need to work together to find the best methods of implementing these climate crisis-tackling standards and regulations, explained Kedzie.

“With clean technologies advancing at such a rapid pace, it’s inherent for federal agencies to understand how these technologies will be deployed and utilized within individual trucking operations,” he said.

In fact, some groups have found one aspect of trucking in which lowering greenhouse gas emissions should be one of the first areas of focus in regards to these new regulations.

“One area [in which] technologies can improve emission outcomes relates to trucks operating at what are known as ‘low loads,’” said EPA. “EPA’s analysis of trucking emissions has shown that current nitrogen oxide controls are not effective under certain low-load operating conditions, such as when trucks idle, move slowly, or operate in stop-and go traffic. Emission-control technologies that can help reduce nitrogen oxide emissions under low-load conditions now exist, and they represent one area [in which] EPA intends to focus as it develops a new nitrogen oxide regulation.”

Legislation Underway to Repeal Truck Excise Tax

August 7, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

As a way to help bring further modernization to the American freight industry, a pair of U.S. senators have introduced a proposal that would repeal the excise tax placed on new truck and trailer purchases.

Highway and freight committee policymakers Senators Ben Cardin of Maryland and Todd Young of Indiana have proposed a new bill that would withdraw the current 12% tax on truck sales–a tax that has been implemented for over 100 years in the United States and is considered to be one of the highest excise taxes levied on any product throughout the country. The repeal of this tax would come as part of 2021’s bipartisan Modern, Clean, and Safe Trucks Act.

“The federal excise tax disproportionately impacts electric and alternative-fueled trucks–which currently have a higher upfront cost–at a time when adoption of these technologies is needed to accelerate the transition to zero-emission vehicles and the reduction of carbon pollution from transportation,” the legislation explained.

Clean power-implementing and fleet-modernizing technologies that are making waves in the domestic truck industry could see many of their private investment opportunities diminished, some of the current tax’s opponents claim.

“Our tax policy is one of the most effective ways Congress can encourage cleaner and green energy,” noted Cardin. “The current federal excise tax has become a barrier to the progress. I am proud to support Maryland manufacturers in their efforts to innovate and deploy cleaner and safer technologies in our trucking industry. Our legislation will spur growth and competitiveness while making our roads safer and less polluted.”

A variety of House transportation policymakers have been working to repeal the tax over the last few years, as many of them believe a change in this kind of legislation is well overdue.

“It’s time to repeal this outdated and onerous tax on our Hoosier truckers,” Senator Young said. “Our bipartisan bill will open the floodgates to investment in safer and cleaner trucks and trailers that will benefit our economy and the environment.”

The excise tax, which came about in the early 20th century, has been able to increase a new truck or trailer’s cost by around $21,000, according to industry analysts. Because of this, various stakeholders, such has the American Truck Dealers (a National Automobile Dealers Association division) and American Trucking Associations have also been voicing their agreement with efforts to repeal the tax.

“The federal excise tax on heavy trucks is a relic from the First World War that’s now serving to keep cleaner, safer trucks off of our nation’s roads today,” explained American Trucking Associations president, Chris Spear. “By repealing this antiquated tax, Congress can deliver a win for the environment, highway safety, manufacturing jobs, and supply chain efficiency. We thank Senators Young and Cardin for their bipartisan leadership in advancing a common-sense solution to the benefit of American truckers and the motoring public.”

Fleets that are working to implement the newest, safest trucks (that are also best for the environment) shouldn’t be punished for doing so, many trucking companies say.

”Cummins supports Senators Young and Cardin’s effort to repeal the outdated and burdensome federal excise tax on heavy duty trucks,” said Cummins Inc.’s president and chief operating officer, Jennifer Rumsey. “This tax penalizes those who want to adopt the cleanest, most advanced technologies to reduce emissions and improve safety, and repealing it will help ensure the most efficient technologies are being deployed. We applaud Senators Young and Cardin’s leadership on this issue [of importance] to the environment, our customers, and our communities.”

Additionally, because so many fleets’ trucks need major updates–and soon–an excise for this tax is of the utmost importance for the nation and the efficiency of its trucking industry.

“On behalf of the trucking industry, we thank Senator Young and Senator Cardin for the bipartisan legislation to repeal the [federal excise tax], which will result in cleaner, safer trucks on the road,” said American Truck Dealers chairman, Steve Bassett. “With most heavy-duty trucks over 10 years old, passing this bill is crucial to help America modernize its aging truck fleet.”

Diagnostic System Regulation Changes Approved by CARB

July 31, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Amendments to regulations pertaining to light-, medium-, and heavy-truck onboard diagnostic systems have been unanimously approved by the California Air Resources Board. This amendment would bring further data requirements, mandating that more data would need to be stored by OBD systems. Malfunction monitor issues would need to be immediately addressed, as well.

These changes would boost OBD system standardization regulations in an effort to adequately solve the issues regarding fault code number limitations that are able to be defined, as well as real-time diagnostic aspects that need improvements.

CARB’s annual smog check program, as well as its heavy-duty truck inspection and maintenance program, would see major upgrades from this amendment, which would bring an additional inspection tool to the programs themselves. The updates are set to be approved by the board by the end of the year.

“Board considers amendments to on-board diagnostic (OBD) system [regulations] requiring [boosted] data stored by OBD benefiting vehicle owners–ensuring malfunctions are promptly repaired, excess emissions [are lowered], and performance [is improved]” said CARB in a recent tweet.

The tweet also featured a graphic listing the reason for these changes, which stated that “program updates will occur regularly,” and listed these updates as occurring due to “technology forcing regulation,” that there will be “periodic reviews to check progress,” and notes the fact that the “last comprehensive OBD update” occurred in 2018. The graphic also mentioned that the “proposed changes address” the “need for more diagnostic information from vehicles, industry concerns,” and “issues discovered through OBD certification.”

The regulation regarding the smog test will require carriers operating in California–whether or not they are based in the state–to submit certified smog tests before crossing into California. Additionally, carriers would see extended timelines when they operate three or fewer trucks that are not compliant with these rules, and will have extended time for truck repairs to meet standards.

On August 3rd, CARB will host a public workshop to discuss pilot program details in regards to the proposed Heavy-Duty Inspection and Maintenance program and to go over the new regulatory language at hand. Stakeholders will have an opportunity to offer feedback at this time, and the formal rule-making process is expected to begin as soon as October.

“California light- and medium-duty vehicles are required to meet very stringent emissions standards,” said Chairman Liane Randolph. “The emissions standards for heavy-duty engines have also become significantly more stringent.”

California is likely to implement the new smog check program as new operating requirements for the state as soon as 2023, ATA noted.

“The CARB workshop will be the last opportunity to give input before it’s formally proposed in October,” said California-based American Trucking Associations environmental researcher, Mike Tunnell. “They’re looking at using the OBD data as the evidence that your truck doesn’t have the malfunction indicator lamp on for any fault codes. That data would get sent to CARB to confirm that the truck is operating without any mechanical issues related to its emissions control system.”

These updates are long-awaited, as onboard diagnostics standards have not been updated since 2018, added CARB’s executive officer, Richard Corey.

“Since then, the agency’s staff has identified several changes that are needed to improve the effectiveness of the regulation, as well as its implementation,” he explained.

According to CARB, new scan tools will not be required for shops or mechanics through these upgrades, because existing hardware will have software updates installed in a timely manner. By model year 2023, vehicles will see early implementation of this updated technology, and model year 2025 models will be required to be equipped with this software

“OBDs have been incorporated in heavy-duty trucks since 2013,” said Tunnell. “It’s already part of the manufacturing process, and the requirements applying to them.”

Still, though, the industry needs to be careful to make sure all OBD provision changes made are clearly referenced in the OBD regulations, explained vice president of the Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association, Tia Sutton.

CARB should “take note of the multiple pending and overlapping programs, especially in cases where regulatory changes to one program would create conflicting or duplicative regulatory requirements with another program, as will be the case here,” she said.

Driver Conviction Notification Rules Often Ignored by Many U.S. States, DOT Says

July 27, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

States have been falling short of the requirement to promptly submit their electronic conviction notifications to federal regulators, according to a recent audit by the Department of Transportation Inspector General.

“States did not timely transmit electronic conviction notifications 17 percent of the time,” noted the audit. “Specifically, we estimate that states of conviction did not timely transmit 18 percent of 2,182 major offenses and 17 percent of 23,628 serious traffic violations in our universe.”

Additionally, there are not sufficient quality control methods in place in regards to determining whether or not state commercial driver’s license programs meet federal requirements under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s current annual review process, the audit added. As of now, states must disqualify the commercial driver’s license of drivers who have faced convictions of serious traffic violations, major criminal offenses, or other serious violations, as mandated by the federal regulations presently in place.

“Major offenses warranting disqualification include convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or committing a felony with a motor vehicle,” the audit explained. “Serious traffic violations, such as excessive speeding or reckless driving, require disqualification if the second offense occurs within three years of the first.”

Disqualifying particularly unfit or unsafe drivers from operating commercial motor vehicles and overall prevention of large truck and bus crashes is the main goal of the FMCSA’s oversight regarding state commercial driver’s license programs, said the audit.

“While FMCSA has established annual program reviews to monitor state compliance, those reviews have gaps in the oversight of CDL disqualifications,” explained the document. “These weaknesses may limit FMCSA’s ability to keep unsafe CDL drivers off the road and enhance public safety.”

When states fail to take adequate action in these circumstances, further unsafe–or even deadly–incidents can take place, such as that cited in an example offered by the audit. In June of 2019, a Massachusetts-licensed commercial driver was involved in a deadly New Hampshire accident in which seven motorcyclists were killed. This incident occurred in fewer than six weeks following Connecticut’s decision to finally suspend his driver’s license after the driver initially refused to undergo chemical drug testing.

“A subsequent internal investigation conducted by the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles concluded the driver’s commercial driver’s license would have been revoked before the crash if the Registry of Motor Vehicles had followed its own procedures for processing out-of-state driver notifications,” explained the July audit. “Furthermore, RMV was not systematically processing paper notifications it received from other states. This traffic incident illustrates the importance of timeliness in processing driver convictions.”

States must notify other states regarding their convictions through the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators’ Commercial Driver’s License Information system system within 10 days. This traffic conviction notification is sent directly to the state in which the convicted driver is licensed. The Inspector General’s audit also added that states are able to mail physical paper conviction notifications as well.

“In either case, under federal requirements, states of conviction have 10 days to send a traffic conviction notification to the state of record, which, in turn, has 10 days to process the conviction and post it to the driver’s record,” noted the audit.

Some mistakes made by various states regarding these regulations were also noted in the audit, such as when Pennsylvania convicted a commercial driver based in Ohio for a hit-and-run incident, but later underwent an administrative hearing regarding the disputed parts of the conviction itself. Because of this, although Pennsylvania completed the judicial process, the state of Ohio did not disqualify the driver. FMCSA found this to be in violation of the federal regulations at hand.

“One state, Louisiana, did not impose the appropriate disqualification for a paper-based traffic conviction until we inquired about it,” said the Inspector General in the audit. “In this example, an individual was eventually disqualified from driving commercial vehicles for life. However, Louisiana took 432 days from conviction to update of the driver record to disqualify the driver.”

Because of incidents like these, as well as many states deciding to allow drivers to face a shorter disqualification time than required by federal law (by backdating the disqualification period to before the state of conviction notification date), Inspector General auditors have presented seven recommendations to FMCSA consisting of methods in which the agency can boost its commercial driver’s license program monitoring.

So far, FMCSA is in agreement with these recommendations.