Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/510235
20 COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | MAY 2015 JOURNAL NEWS T he Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association last month filed a petition with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit to intervene in a cross-border trucking lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The lawsuit, filed in March by the Teamsters and safety advocacy groups, challenges the government's decision to grant permanent operating authority to Mexico-domiciled trucking companies to conduct long-haul trucking services throughout the United States. Following a three-year pilot program, FMCSA in January announced it was opening the U.S. operating authority application process to all Mexican carriers, partly as a measure to bring the United States into compliance with provisions in the North American Free Trade Agreement. OOIDA contends that the pilot program did not generate enough data to reach an informed conclusion about whether the border should be opened. The associa- tion also questions the evaluation and validity of the information collected during the pilot program. The association also believes that the border should not be opened until Mexico establishes equivalent regulatory trucking standards to that of the United States and proves that its trucking industry can comply fully with U.S. safety regulations. OOIDA's petition to intervene states that as the representative of small-business truck drivers, the association can bring a unique practical and legal perspective compared to the other petitioners regarding the ability of Mexico-domiciled trucking companies to operate safely on U.S. highways. Also, the motion points out that the economic interests of small-business truck drivers differs from the interests represented by the other petitioners. The Teamsters' lawsuit alleges that FMCSA's report to Congress – on which it based its decision to open the border to all Mexican-domiciled carriers – "is arbi- trary and capricious in light of the admitted lack of significant data" gleaned dur- ing the agency's three-year cross-border pilot program. The union's claims about the data quality somewhat align with conclusions made by DOT's Office of Inspector General, which issued a report in December that said FMCSA's data was insufficient given the low number of Mexican carrier participants and the lack of quality inspection data. OIG said in its report that the conclusions FMCSA made from its pilot program – that Mexican carriers are just as safe as U.S. carriers – were invalid given the sus- pect data. The American Trucking Associations has taken a mostly neutral stance, say- ing it's fine with the border being opened as long as Mexican carriers and drivers abide by U.S. safety regulations. – Staff reports P ilot Travel Centers and its subsid- iary Flying J joined a dozen other fuel and convenience store chains in objecting to the proposed $25 million "hot fuel" settlement. According to court documents, the fuel providers object to the way the funds are to be spent, with too little going to victims and too much going to state governments and fuel wholesalers and retailers. The key concern of the objectors is the institution of a fund that makes payments to state governments when they change their laws to require fuel providers to install automatic temperature compensa- tion equipment at fuel pumps. The objec- tors say that money "end-run[s]" legisla- tors and regulators who have rejected laws to implement ATC equipment. The "hot fuel" lawsuits stemmed from fuel buyers' claims that fuel providers violated consumer protection laws by not disclosing that fuel expands in warmer temperatures, thereby making a gallon of gas or diesel contain less energy and be worth less in warmer months. Pilot Flying J and Love's were included in a settlement with 18 other companies that agreed to pay $1.58 million in a larger $25 million settlement. BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Shell and Sinclair agreed to pay $23 million. The court granted approval to the settle- ment in January, and a fairness hearing is set for June 9. – James Jaillet Pilot Flying J on list of objectors to $25M 'hot fuel' settlement OOIDA files to intervene in Teamsters' cross-border trucking lawsuit OOIDA says it can bring a unique perspective regarding the ability of Mexico-domiciled trucking companies to operate safely on U.S. highways. Pilot Flying J is among roughly a dozen fuel providers objecting to the way the proposed $25 million "hot fuel" settlement funds are designated to be spent.