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June
29, 2004
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Headline
News
Professional
Truck Driver Institute Announces 2004-2005 Board and Committee Members
Click
here to read press release.
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Driving
School Learns Hard Lesson On the Importance of Insurance
One truck driving
school learned a hard lesson when the licenses on twelve tractor-trailers
were removed after the owner of the school failed to pay his insurance
premium. WSTM News reported that the owner of the Central Square Driving
Academy (CSDA) in Central New York stopped paying his $55,000 insurance
premium in February while he looked for a cheaper carrier. His fleet
was taken off the road in May. As punishment, the DMV has ordered the
CSDA fleet grounded until September 15th, meaning any truck drivers
trying to get their CDL-A license will have to wait. Drivers were given
the option of taking classes towards a CDL-B.
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TCA Sends Letter of Support for ATA petition on Cargo Securement Rules
In a June 18 letter
sent to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Administrator
Annette Sandberg, TCA expressed support for the American Trucking Associations
(ATA) filed Petition For Reconsideration on the agency’s Cargo
Securement Rule (Title 49 CFR §§393 Subpart I – Protection
Against Shifting and Falling Cargo Rule). This rule was originally issued
on September 27, 2002, and became effective January 1, 2004.
The ATA’s
June 9 petition raised three issues relating to the FMCSA’s cargo
securement rules as follows:
1) To clarify
§393.102(a)(1) and (3). ATA feels that “for the sake of
uniformity, the agency should clarify the current rules and revise
them to reflect the forward and lateral acceleration requirements
of 0.4g and 0.25g, respectively”, as described in it’s
December 31, 2003 memo entitled “Cargo Securement Enforcement
Policy.”
2) To remove
§393.104(f)(4). ATA believes the following paragraph from this
section of the regulations is ambiguous and should be removed: “All
tiedowns and other components of a cargo securement system used to
secure loads on a trailer equipped with rub rails, must be located
inboard of the rub rails whenever practicable”; and
3) Clarify §393.118(d)(3)(iv)(B).
To ensure the proper securement of the type of cargo detailed in the
section, the ATA recommends simplifying the regulatory language to
make it less confusing. They suggest, “more consistent compliance
can be obtained by designating separate paragraphs for loads of three
vertical tiers of bundles, and loads with four or more vertical tiers
of bundles…In addition, the word ‘tier’ could be
substituted by the word ‘stack’.”
TCA has reviewed
the ATA petition in its entirety, and concurs with all of the recommendations
on these issues.
We will keep you
posted on further developments on this issue. To read TCA’s letter
of support of ATA’s petition click here. If you wish to get a
copy of the ATA petition or if you have any questions on this issue,
please contact Rich Clemente at TCA (703) 838-8847 or email: rclemente@truckload.org.
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Ohio Trucking Association Wins Appeal, TCA Applauds the Unanimous Decision, Provided Financial Support to OTA
On June 23, the
Ohio Supreme Court in a unanimous 7-0 decision reversed the Ohio Board
of Tax Appeals decision to assess a personal property tax on the refrigeration
units in refrigerated trailers. The Court’s decision states, “We
find the decision of the Board of Tax Appeals to be unreasonable and
unlawful, and hereby reverse it.”
On March 24 of last
year, the Ohio Trucking Association (OTA) on behalf of their refrigerated
unit motor carriers filed an appeal with the Ohio Supreme Court on the
decision of the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals. The reason for the appeal
was that, in late 2002 the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals upheld a 1999 decision
to tax refrigeration equipment on a refrigerated trailer as personal
property on the basis that the refrigerated equipment serves a purpose
unrelated to the use of the motor vehicle. According to the OTA, based
on that decision Ohio would have soon begun to assess refrigerated carriers
in Ohio a personal property tax of $370 to $840 per year on each refrigerated
trailer.
As a result of the
potential bad precedent that decision could have sent in other states,
TCA and several of its carrier members contributed financially to assist
OTA in its appeal. We congratulate OTA on this victory. For additional
details concerning this case, please contact Larry Davis, OTA’s
President at (888) 382-1574.
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RSPA
Grants Appeal on HM-215E, Generic Packaging Types To Be Included on
Shipping Papers
The DOT’s
Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) issued a final rule
in the June 22, Federal Register, that responded to the industry’s
request for the agency to reconsider their requirement to include number
and types of packages on shipping papers. RSPA granted the ATA’s
appeal of HM-215E, which amended aspects of the hazardous materials
(HM) regulations to conform to international standards. TCA had also
filed a letter of support to the docket after reviewing the ATA appeal.
We concurred with their recommended solution and stated, …as “truckload
carriers would find it impracticable to train their hazmat employees
to recognize the scores of UN packing designations.”
The rule was originally
published on July 31, 2003, (click here to see a summary [link to August
5, 2003 TCA Truckload Carrier Report]) requiring the HM shipping paper
to include an indication of packaging type. While the industry supported
the inclusion of the generic packaging type – for example, cylinder
box or drum – the original final rule would have allowed the packaging
type to be indicated by either the generic type or by the UN specification
number (e.g., UN1A1). ATA and TCA appealed this aspect of the rule,
arguing that it would be extremely difficult to train the drivers to
recognize the myriad of UN specification packaging codes. As a result
of this appeal, any of the following indications will now be acceptable:
“6 drums” “6 1A1 drums” or “6 drums (UN
1A1).” The “delayed compliance effective date” for
the HM-215E rule including these recent amendments is October 1, 2004.
A copy of the June 22 Register rule can be found by
clicking here for an HTML
and here for a PDF
.
In addition, on
the same day in the Federal Register, RSPA issued a Notice
of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Docket HM-215G, in which the agency
is proposing to amend the HM regulations to maintain alignment with
international standards by incorporating various amendments, including
changes to proper shipping names, hazard classes, packing groups, special
provisions, packaging authorizations, air transport quantity limitations
and vessel stowage requirements. These proposed revisions are necessary
in this NPRM to facilitate the transport of HM in international commerce
due to recent changes to the International Maritime Dangerous Goods
Code (IMDG Code), the International Civil Aviation Organization’s
Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by
Air (ICAO Technical Instructions), and the United Nations Recommendations
on the Transport of Dangerous Goods (UN Recommendations). Industry comments
on this NPRM must be filed by August 23, 2004, and a copy of the June
22 Register NPRM can be found by clicking here for an HTML
and here for a PDF
.
If you have any
questions or comments contact Rich Clemente at TCA (703) 838-8847 or
by email: rclemente@truckload.org
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Congress
Extends Current Highway Bill Funding Through July
Late last week,
Congress approved yet another extension of the current highway reauthorization
program. Without this action, funding for the Department of Transportation
and many other surface transportation programs would have been halted,
as the current program was set to expire on June 30. This latest action
by Congress marks the fourth time that the current highway program has
been extended, from an original deadline of September 30, 2003, to this
latest deadline of July 31, 2004. The Senate passed this extension by
a voice vote, while the House voted unanimously (418-0).
As you have read
in the past, and according to the latest news reports, President Bush
has threatened to veto a bill higher than the $256 billion he was seeking,
but Don Young (R-AK), the Chairman of the Transportation Committee;
said he would remain firm on at least the $275 billion in talks with
the Senate on a final bill. By way of reminder, the House approved a
$283 billion bill on April 2 and the Senate passed a $318 billion bill
on February 12.
Without any agreement
on the overall spending number, the House and Senate will have difficulty
settling on the formula that determines how federal funds are distributed
among the states. The states are now guaranteed a return of 90.5 cents
for every dollar they contribute to the highway trust fund, which holds
the money accumulated from the 18.4 cents a gallon federal gas tax that
pays for highway construction. The larger, more populated states that
get back less than they pay into the fund are not happy with this and
are demanding a return rate of at least 95%, which will be difficult
to achieve unless the total spending package is closer to the Senate-approved
level.
For a copy of the
latest summary chart of the major provisions of the House and Senate
versions of the bills click here.
For further questions or information, please contact Rich Clemente at
(703) 838-8847 or by email: rclemente@truckload.org.
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