5 minutes

Dennis Katsnelson

Federation President Sees Opportunities for Trucking

Chris Spear, president of the American Trucking Association, declared 2023 a year of development for the organization. He is prepared to speak at the next ATA Management Conference & Exhibition in Austin, Texas, about the advancements accomplished and the prospects that lie ahead. In a segment of the TT Newsmakers program devoted to the upcoming show, Spear said, "I'm looking forward to this great opportunity to talk about these issues and set the tenor." "I believe we need to be sure we are aware of our members' needs, and MCE is a chance to do that."

The convention is scheduled in the Austin Convention Center from October 14–17. Fleets, drivers, shippers, and other industry stakeholders have identified several concerns that Spear is concentrating on, including increasing truck parking, workforce development, and attracting more young people to the business. The continuation of the campaign to end lawsuit abuse, the ongoing appeal before a federal appeals court to uphold a ruling that Rhode Island's trucks-only tolling program is unlawful, and the elimination of the federal excise tax on the sale of new vehicles are also on the agenda.

As a result of his belief that it prevents certain fleets from purchasing new, more fuel-efficient trucks with updated emissions technology and instead keeps older vehicles on the road, Spear said repealing the World War I-era tariff on new truck sales has become a high priority.

"I believe that once a law is passed, it is difficult to repeal it. This is one of them, he continued. "It belonged to a collection of tariffs used to pay for trench combat in World War I. It's the last remaining tax from that category. Every new tractor sold is subject to a 12.5% tax, which works out to around $25,000 per tractor on average. There would be a significant impact on both safety and the environment if newer equipment currently accessible on the lot were to be used on the roads.”

On this topic, Spear testified before Congress. ATA is collaborating with legislators to find a solution to restore the funds that the repeal would take away from the federal Treasury. He pointed out that the tax brings in around $5 billion annually, which he called a "rounding error" in the context of the proposed $6.9 trillion federal budget.

Rhode Island's appeal of a federal district court decision from 2022 that found the state's trucks-only tolling program was unlawful has significant financial ramifications for carriers. On September 12, oral arguments were before the First Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals.

“ I believe our counsel is confident in our justifications and capacity to address this, Spear added. "We believe we will succeed in this. This should go our way. Just pure corruption, that's all. The Interstate Commerce Clause is broken when a state levies taxes on vehicles from other states. Based on those factors, the federal district court judge found in our favor, and we believe we will succeed on appeal as well.”

The American Trucking Association (ATA) and other organizations, such as the U.S. Chamber of Trade, claimed Rhode Island's tolling system was specifically created with the illegal intent of making out-of-state trucks involved in interstate trade pay for the upkeep of the state's infrastructure.

Although Rhode Island is a small state, Spear continued, "if this were to hold, it would spread to New York, Connecticut, Indiana, and my home state of Wyoming."

Spear claimed that efforts by the ATA and state associations to prevent multimillion-dollar "nuclear verdicts," defined as jury awards above $10 million, are also making headway. "I believe that the plaintiff's bar declared war on the trucking business in 2019, and we began tossing. This was designated as a tier one issue by us," he stated. The states of Missouri, Louisiana, Texas, Montana, West Virginia, Georgia, and most recently, Florida and Iowa have all witnessed great success and repeated victories. Additionally, this work will last for a few years.

In the months preceding MCE, Spear also had multiple in-person discussions with Pete Buttigieg, secretary of the Department of Transportation, and other federal officials on the most important challenges facing regulators, such as increasing the accessibility of secure truck parking.

"Our federal government has to provide drivers with the tools — they've got to give them the parking spaces needed to comply with federal law," Spear added. "On Capitol Hill, we're really delivering that message. Tennessee, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas have all experienced some success. Additionally, South Dakota and Wyoming are moving toward adding parking. 98% of drivers claim to have encountered this: "If you don't have a place to park your equipment, you're going to spend a lot of time and money at the driver's expense looking for that place to park and comply with the hours-of-service regulations."

“There is widespread consensus,” according to Spear, “that this is an investment of our infrastructure monies that is required.”