WITH VERY FEW, IF ANY, BILLS ACTUALLY MOVING THROUGH CONGRESS AND THE HOPE OF A HIGHWAY REAUTHORIZATION BILL IN 2015, THE PLAY WAS MADE TO AMEND THE TRANSPORTATION APPROPRIATIONS, THE FUNDING BILL REFERRED TO AS T-HUD.
funding law, MAP-21, which was passed in the summer of 2012. Meanwhile, few argue that the
nation’s transportation infrastructure is being funded adequately. The American Society of Civil Engineers grades the country’s roads a D, while the Federal Highway Administration says an addi- tional $8 billion is needed annually for the nation’s structurally deficient bridges. The Arkansas Trucking Association
and the American Trucking Associations both say the only way to meet America’s infrastructure challenges is to increase the fuel taxes that pay for most highway construction and maintenance. At the federal level, those taxes haven’t risen from 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.4 cents for diesel since 1993. In recent years, the federal government has been forced to shore up the Highway Trust Fund with disbursements from the rest of the budget. Because of inflation and because motor vehicles are becom- ing ever more fuel-efficient, Americans essentially have gotten a tax cut every year for a basic government service, and owners of electric cars receive that ser- vice virtually for free. But what political candidate will make that argument, particularly in an election year? It’s hard to imagine Cotton sup-
porting any tax increase, even for highways. Pryor indicated he could do so with the right bill under the right circumstances in a 2011 story in The Hill magazine.
HOT TOPICS Hours-of-service rules are back
as the top concern among trucking industry stakeholders in the American Transportation Research Institute’s (ATRI) most recent annual survey. The
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operational impacts being experienced across the supply chain from the chang- es that went into effect in 2013 seem- ingly caused the issue to return to the top concern. Given that the FMCSA has shown
no signs of revisiting the matter, the industry is left with limited alternatives to address this concern. According to Spear, the Chief of Legislative Affairs for the American Trucking Associations, “Really, our only options are litigation and legislation.” Litigation can be very costly and somewhat unpredictable, so in May of this year the ATA launched a legislative strategy to try to get some relief from the most detrimental hours- of-service provisions implemented in 2013.
With very few, if any, bills actu-
ally moving through Congress and the hope of a highway reauthorization bill in 2015, the play was made to amend the transportation appropriations, the funding bill referred to as T-HUD. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, introduced an amendment that would suspend por- tions of the rules that require truck drivers to take breaks between 1 and 5 a.m. on consecutive nights and limit the drivers to declaring one restart per week. The Collins Amendment passed in committee with a bipartisan 21-9 vote. Senator Pryor working with Republicans and trucking industry executives voted for the passage of the Collins Amendment. The amendment and the appropria-
tions bill – which includes Department of Transportation funding for fiscal 2015 – never made it to the Senate floor for a vote. The American Trucking Associations hopes that an omnibus funding bill will be worked during the lame duck session allowing the Collins
amendment to be revived. Of course, there are other issues
that are important for trucking profes- sionals to consider. The two candidates have cast opposite votes on many issues. Pryor voted for the Affordable Care Act. Cotton has made his opposition to the ACA one of the centerpieces of his campaign. Pryor voted for the Farm Bill, while Cotton was the only member of the Arkansas congressional delegation to vote against it. While these issues may seem divorced from trucking, healthcare costs have been a concern for many business own- ers. Additionally, truckers are often in danger of increased health risks due to the sedentary demands of the job. The Farm Bill, of course, affects much more than farmers, but the whole network of truckers, energy providers and retailers in the supply-chain. It should be noted that, after
watching both candidates sling mud at each other since the first part of 2013, some voters might decide they can’t vote for either one. For them, there are two other choices – Libertarian Nathan LaFrance and Green Party candidate Mark Swaney. Neither of those candi- dates has slung any mud at anybody – but then, they can’t afford to, because they haven’t raised much money. Without a doubt, this year’s Senate
race between Cotton and Pryor is con- sequential. Yet, Washington will remain a
dysfunctional, partisan place regardless of who wins. The good news is that, on Nov. 4, the votes will be counted and the campaigning will stop. Until Nov. 5, when the next elec-
tion will begin.
ARKANSAS TRUCKING REPORT | Issue 5 2014
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