AMERICAN TRUCKING ASSOCIATIONS

Arlington, Va. – The American Trucking Associations (ATA) Executive Committee and the Port of Long Beach Harbor Commissioners have each approved a Settlement negotiated between Port officials and ATA and trucking industry representatives. The Settlement is based upon motor carrier registration process, referred to as a Registration and Agreement, which will replace the Port’s Concession Agreement. The Settlement is also expected to end litigation with the Port of Long Beach, however litigation with the Port of Los Angeles will continue.

Both the Port and ATA emphasized that the new registration apparatus, which includes an agreement by carriers to provide the Port necessary operating information, will allow the Port to strictly oversee and enforce motor carrier’s compliance with federal, state, and port safety, security, and environmental regulations. In particular, motor carriers registering to operate at the Port must agree to enter all truck and driver information into the Port’s Drayage Truck Registry and to equip each truck with Radio Frequency Identification tag or other technological device to allow the Port to monitor and control truck entry to Port facilities. Motor carriers must also certify, among other things, that any truck dispatched to the Port will comply with all federal, state, and Port safety, security and environmental--including the Port’s Clean Trucks Program--regulations.  Similarly, motor carriers will acknowledge responsibility for ensuring that all drivers dispatched to the Port possess a valid commercial drivers’ license and a Transportation Worker Identification Card.  The Registration further acknowledges the right of the Port to deny entry to any truck or driver that does not meet these regulatory requirements. 

The Registration and Agreement also contains a carrier’s acknowledgement that its trucks are subject to inspections while on Port property to further ensure safety, security, and environmental compliance. The authority of the Port to conduct truck safety, security, and emissions inspections of any truck on Port property is spelled out in the document. The Registration also authorizes the Port to gain access to the Intermodal Association of North America’s virtually real time data base to ensure that motor carriers have appropriate insurance coverage.

Port officials believe that the new Registration and Agreement provides the Port the information and authority it needs to ensure compliance with its Clean Trucks Program. Harbor Commission President Nick Sramek said that “under the new registration system, the Port of Long Beach will have the tools to strictly monitor and enforce its Clean Trucks Program and the Program’s truck emission reductions.  It will also be positioned to enforce fully all of its security and safety related regulations.”   

ATA President and CEO Bill Graves expressed satisfaction that ATA and the Ports could reach an agreement. “ATA has always strongly supported the environmental objectives of the Port and supports strict compliance with and adherence to all safety and security laws and regulations,” said Graves. “We never disagreed with their objectives, only with certain provisions of the Concession Agreements which we believed were unnecessary for the accomplishment of those objectives.” Graves also noted that ATA has long supported the concept of truck inspections on Port property as the most effective method of monitoring and ensuring regulatory compliance.

The American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of other trucking groups, industry-related conferences, and its 50 affiliated state trucking associations, ATA represents more than 37,000 members covering every type of motor carrier in the United States.

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