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ATA Truck Tonnage Index Jumped 3.1 Percent in January -- Blogcast
The American Trucking Associations’ advance seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index jumped 3.1 percent in January, following a revised 1.3 percent increase in December 2009. The latest gain boosted the SA index from 107 (2000=100) in December to 110.4 in January, its highest level since September 2008.  The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 99.5 in January, down 3.3 percent from the previous month.

ATA recently revised the seasonally adjusted index back five years as part of its annual revision.

Compared with January 2009, SA tonnage surged 5.7 percent, which was the best year-over-year reading since January 2005 and the second consecutive increase.  For all of 2009, the tonnage index was down 8.7 percent (slightly larger than the previously reported 8.3 percent drop), which was the largest annual decrease since a 12.3 percent plunge in 1982.

ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said that the latest tonnage reading, coupled with anecdotal reports from carriers, indicates that both the industry and the economy are clearly in a recovery mode.   “While I don’t expect tonnage to continue growing as robustly as it did in January, the industry is finally moving in the right direction.  Although there are still risks that could throw the rebound off track, the likelihood of that happening continues to diminish.”

To listen to the blogcast, click the link below. To download to your computer, right click and choose "save as."

http://www.truckline.com/Newsroom/Industry Documents/03 10 10 tonnage podcast.mp3 
Navistar Supports ATA’s Driver Recruitment Initiative For Returning Military Personnel
Navistar International Corp. presented a $10,000 check to ATA in support of its initiative to recruit returning military personnel into the trucking industry, TheTrucker.com reported last week.

“We’re proud to support the ATA’s driver recruitment effort,” said Jim Hebe, Senior Vice President, North American sales operations, Navistar. “Through this initiative the ATA is taking a proactive step to address the challenges that will face the trucking industry in the years to come.”

Though driver retention is up due to the current U.S. economic recession, the trucking industry has and will continue to face driver shortages as freight volumes begin to increase.

“Navistar launched its ‘Drive for Jobs’ program late last year in conjunction with the first customer delivery of the International LoneStar Harley-Davidson Special Edition and in celebration of Truck Driver Appreciation Week,” TheTrucker.com said.

“Through the ‘Drive for Jobs’ program, owner-operator Chris Hawker, the first to purchase the one-of-a-kind truck, began his journey from the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee to his regular work route from Westfield, N.Y., to Jacksonville, Fla.” For each mile that Hawker drove during the trip, Navistar made a contribution to ATA’s recruitment campaign, said the article.

“We appreciate Navistar’s support for ATA’s initiative to promote truck driving as a career option,” said Bill Graves, ATA president and CEO. “The men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces are ideal candidates to become trucking industry professionals — they have all the motivation and tools necessary to move successfully from the military into our industry.”
Despite Budget Crisis, Los Angeles Spends Taxpayers’ Money for Teamsters
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called for additional job cuts last week to help mend the city’s current $212 million budget shortfall that is expected to double next year, reported the Los Angeles Times.

“Villaraigosa's threats provided the clearest sign yet that he has decided to take a more aggressive approach to the worsening financial crisis, which threatens the city's credit rating and ability to borrow,” the Times said.

Despite the city’s dire budget crisis, Los Angeles continues to spend millions of taxpayer dollars to help the Teamsters unionize truck drivers at the Port of Los Angeles.

At the urging of the union, the mayor has spent more than $5 million in legal fees to pursue a truck concession plan that the U.S. District Court of Appeals ruled is illegal. The mayor is also spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to lobby the federal government to change federal transportation law and allow ports and municipalities to regulate interstate trucking.

If enacted, the Port of Los Angeles would then have the authority to ban independent owner operator truck drivers, mandating that only large companies be allowed to haul freight at the port. The authority to regulate interstate trucking currently lies only with the federal government, in order to protect businesses from a national patchwork of differing regulations that would inhibit commerce.

The Mayor’s crusade to ban owner operators from the Port not only depletes city resources but, if it succeeds, would force thousands of owner operators out of business at a time when unemployment in the LA area is over 10 percent.
Port of LA Gets More Pushback on Plan to Unionize Drivers
Rifts between ports, cities, and labor unions will make it harder to bend federal transportation law to force the unionizing of the harbor trucking industry, according to a Feb. 8 Journal of Commerce (JOC) article, Rift in the Road.

“Ports, cities and labor unions are sharply at odds not only with each other but within their own ranks over efforts to overhaul regulation of harbor trucking, and the rifts will make it even harder for groups proposing changes to win an amendment to federal law,” JOC said.

Last month the Association of American Port Authorities, a group that represents port authorities nationwide, voted not to support efforts by one of its largest members, the Port of Los Angeles, to amend the federal law that prohibits state and local regulation of interstate trucking.

Los Angeles is spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayers’ dollars to lobby congress to allow ports and municipalities to regulate interstate trucking. That authority currently lies only with the federal government, in order to protect transportation from a national patchwork of differing regulations that would inhibit commerce and stifle business.

At the request of the Teamsters, Los Angeles’ Mayor is pushing for the change in federal law to advance the Teamsters’ goal to unionize the harbor trucking industry – a segment currently dominated by independent owner-operators. The Teamsters’ goal is to change federal law and permit ports and other government entities to ban owner-operators.

The Teamsters’ and the Mayor’s cover story is that owner-operators need to be outlawed to permit improvements in diesel truck emissions in the port to continue.  The AAPA’s recent policy statement said “ports have all the authority they need under existing law to ban old, polluting trucks from marine terminals,” reported JOC.  The successes of the Clean Truck Programs in both Los Angeles and Long Beach are proof of that.

A rift also exists within the labor community.  The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) objected to the Teamsters’ inclusion of the word “security” into its proposed amendment to federal transportation law, the JOC reported.

An ILWU spokesperson stated that “there are already a number of layers of security requirements at ports that directly affect longshoremen, and the industry does not need another layer,” JOC said.
Note to Congress: Rein in Destructive Commodity Derivatives Trading
NOTE: The entry below was written by Randy Mullett, Vice President, Government Relations and Public Affairs, for Con-way Inc. and appears originally at www.freightpublicpolicy.org.

Last Wednesday, I spoke on behalf of the American Trucking Associations
 (ATA) at a press conference sponsored by the Derivatives Reform Alliance. This organization is advocating for tougher regulation of commodity derivatives trading, which includes crude oil and refined products like diesel fuel.

If that sounds like some arcane financial manipulation practice, you're right. But it affects anyone who uses diesel fuel, since the effect of this practice is to encourage excessive speculation in the trading and pricing of energy-based commodities.

Transportation companies already are under pressure from tight margins, excess supply and slack demand for services. Throw in volatile diesel fuel prices and it's no wonder many companies are struggling to stay afloat. To deliver virtually all of the country's consumer goods, the trucking industry consumes 34 billion gallons of diesel fuel annually. Fuel is generally considered the second highest expense incurred by trucking companies. Every one-cent increase in the price of diesel fuel costs the trucking industry an additional $340 million a year.

One year ago, the price of oil was $42 a barrel. Today that price is up over 70 percent, despite the fact that global demand is down, crude oil inventories are well above average, and the dollar has declined by only 8 percent relative to the Euro. What's driving the higher prices? Excessive speculation is the only other variable left unaccounted for.

While there is no good metric that will quantify how much of the volatility and increased price of crude oil can be attributed to the influence of excessive speculation, it's clear that this is part of the problem. To address this market disconnect, we believe that the federal government should take steps to increase the transparency of the derivatives markets. Reasonable aggregate position limits should be set. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has proposed position limits for energy trades on certain commodities exchanges; however, this step by itself is insufficient to curb the problem of excessive speculation. There are still loopholes which allow destructive practices and leave the buyers of diesel fuel - and ultimately consumers - on the hook for the cost.

It is time for Congress to strengthen the Commission's authority and eliminate trading loopholes. We encourage mandated transparency and stated aggregate position limits for all markets (including over-the-counter and foreign exchanges) that trade energy commodity derivatives. If we do not enforce position limits, the practice of excessive speculation will continue beyond the control of government regulators.

Importantly, the CFTC or Congress also must clarify and define the difference between a commercial participant and a legitimate hedger. A commercial participant -- such as a trucking company -- must take physical possession of a petroleum product. The trucking industry typically hedges diesel fuel by purchasing heating oil and crude oil derivatives. Recognizing these hedging surrogates is important in determining the status of various commercial participants. Those who purchase petroleum derivative contracts as a hedge against inflation -- but who never take possession of the products -- are more akin to pure speculators and should not be considered commercial participants. This destructive practice cries out for more legislative or regulatory oversight.

Transparency that distinguishes between commercial and non-commercial participants has no potential downside. Trading markets are improved and the price of oil remains unaffected. Tougher regulation would likely reduce speculative bubbles, restore investor confidence and strengthen the link between commodity prices and market fundamentals. We call on Congress to do the right thing and protect the commodities markets from destructive, excessive speculation through derivatives practices that add no value.

C. Randal (Randy) Mullett is Vice President, Government Relations and Public Affairs, for Con-way Inc. As Con-way's senior policy manager and executive representative in Washington, D.C. Mullett is responsible for the company's relationships with national business and trade associations, as well as federal legislative and regulatory advocacy efforts on homeland security, business sustainability, freight transportation and other policy issues important to the enterprise and its employees.
 
Port Group Rejects Teamster Effort to Amend Federal Transportation Law
The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) will not join efforts by the Ports of Los Angeles (POLA) and Oakland to amend federal transportation law, the Journal of Commerce reported Jan. 27.

“At issue in this debate is an effort by the Ports … to amend federal preemption authority over interstate commerce to give ports regulatory control over harbor trucking in matters relating to security, congestion and the environment,” said JOC.

The Teamsters Union seeks the change in federal law so ports and local jurisdictions can ban owner-operators and make it easier to unionize port truck drivers.

“This labor issue is dividing the port industry … [and] the AAPA, which represents more than 140 public port authorities, determined it should take a position on the issue that is dividing the industry. Susan Monteverde, AAPA's vice president of government relations, said the issue boiled down to whether ports should be able to regulate the vehicle or the motor carrier,” said the magazine.

Port Authorities can regulate the types of trucks that drive into ports. Clean Truck Programs at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach ban trucks with older diesel engines to reduce truck pollution. However, Port Authorities can not regulate the type of drivers that are behind to wheel.

The Port of Los Angeles attempted to require all harbor truck companies to replace independent contractor drivers with employee drivers. The U.S. Court of Appeals determined this requirement violated federal law. Now Los Angeles and its allies are lobbying the federal government to change the law.

According to the Journal of Commerce, since the Port of Long Beach has proven it can reduce truck pollution by about 80 percent 2 years ahead of schedule without banning independent contractors, “AAPA does not believe it is necessary to engage in a costly and controversial effort to amend the law, Monteverde said.” A majority of the six-member AAPA Legislative Policy Committee voted not to seek an amendment and that is now the position of the AAPA, Monteverde said.
Survey Shows Americans Support Greater Infrastructure Investments
A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Jan. 29 indicates that 80 percent of Americans support spending stimulus funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to build or repair roads and bridges, justifying the American Trucking Associations’ (ATA) support for these projects that provide jobs and make transportation more efficient. Only 62 percent of those polled approved of stimulus spending on trains, buses or mass transit.

On Jan. 25 CNN released poll results showing that nearly three out of four Americans think that much of the money spent in the federal stimulus plan has been wasted, largely because they have not seen tangible benefits from the widespread government spending. Just $26.6 billion – a mere 3.3 percent – of the total $787 billion stimulus package enacted in February 2009 was made available for highway, road and bridge projects.

“There is much skepticism that the bill is wasteful, full of politically-motivated projects, and has benefitted fat cats at the expense of ordinary Americans," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.

ATA Past Chairman Charles "Shorty" Whittington told President Obama at the National Jobs Summit in December that investing in highways is the quickest, most efficient way to create jobs and restore the economy. He encouraged the President to consider the economic benefits of longer-term spending as well, not just a one-time stimulus. “Infrastructure spending makes U.S. businesses more competitive,” said Whittington. “Every dollar invested in the nation’s highway system yields $5.40 in economic benefits as a result of reduced delays, improved safety and lower vehicle operating costs.” Traffic congestion caused by freight bottlenecks poses a great threat to U.S. productivity. Last year the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) estimated that Americans wasted $87 billion in the form of 2.8 billion gallons of fuel and 4.2 billion hours because of traffic congestion in the 439 urban ‘chokepoints’ identified across the country. TTI reports that 12,676 new lane-miles of highways and roads are needed to keep up with congestion.

According to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, there are nearly 7,500 highway projects throughout the country worth more than $47 billion that could be started almost immediately. The Federal Highway Administration estimates that each billion dollars invested in federal-aid highway projects generates approximately 30,000 jobs. Therefore, this spending level could, in a very short time span, create at least 1.4 million good jobs, while also making our highways safer and less congested.

ATA urges Congress and the Obama Administration to expedite funding for ready-to-go highway projects while continuing to work toward quick passage of a long-term highway bill with robust funding for highway projects that yield significant national and regional economic benefits.
Port of LA Continues To Use Taxpayer Dollars To Lobby For Union Agenda
The Port of Los Angeles Harbor Commission approved a contract extension with a lobbying firm to continue pressing Congress for changes to federal laws that regulate the trucking industry, the Journal of Commerce reports.

Los Angeles contracted with the lobbyist last spring and “since then has extended the contract several times. Under the latest extension, the port will pay the firm $60,000 to continue representing its interests through April 26. That payment will raise the total contract cost so far to $265,500,” the magazine said.

“The Washington lobbying firm is spearheading port efforts to draw new limits on federal trucking oversight and allow local regulation of harbor trucking,” said Mongelluzzo. At present, federal law protects the trucking industry from a patchwork of local regulations that would stifle commerce and the flow of goods at our nation’s ports.

“At the core of this effort is an attempt by the Teamsters union to organize port truckers nationwide,” said Mongelluzzo. The Teamsters union and their allies in the Los Angeles government attached a requirement to the Port’s clean trucks program that would ban independent owner operators and force all port truck drivers to work for large companies, making it easier to unionize the workforce.

The U.S. Court of Appeals said the Port of Los Angeles’s employee requirement was illegal and halted its implementation, saying the requirement had nothing to do with safety or the environment at the port. However, the City continues to use taxpayer dollars to fight for its union agenda through litigation with the trucking industry and through lobbying for a change in federal law. According to CityWatch, Los Angeles has already spent $5 million with an additional $2 million to $3 million budgeted for litigation and lobbying to defend the requirement, which would force thousands of independent owner-operators to give up their businesses.
Business as Usual: Clean truck programs haven’t hindered Ports
The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach ban on diesel trucks built before 2003 kicked off this month, and it was pretty much a non-event, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reported.

The newspaper said that just 3 old trucks were turned away on Day 1, while 400 clean, new trucks rolled in at the Port of Long Beach with hardly a whiff of emissions. The scene was similar at the Port of Los Angeles. Business continued as usual.

Many were surprised that most of the cleanup already had been accomplished – 80 percent of diesel emissions had been eliminated, and 90 percent of the trucks serving the ports meet the new, stringent clean-air standards,” the Press-Telegram said.

This environmental progress belies claims by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters that the ports cannot attain environmental goals unless owner-operators are banned and all drayage drivers are required to work for trucking firms. To sell their scheme as a port cleanup program, the Teamsters assembled a hodgepodge of groups, including the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club, to mislead the public about their goal. Former Long Beach Harbor Commission President James Hankla said that the environmental community made a devil’s bargain with the Teamsters and “come hell or high water, they are going to defend that position.”

The Port of Long Beach never adopted the Teamsters’ plan to ban owner-operators and has not been hindered in cleaning the air. Despite the environmental success at Long Beach, the Teamsters, environmental groups and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, a former union organizer, are campaigning to require not only the Port of Los Angeles but distribution centers and ports nationwide to ban owner-operators and allow only employee drivers, which would enable the Teamsters to organize them, reported the Press-Telegram. The Teamsters want federal transportation law changed to allow state, county and municipal governments to regulate interstate trucking, which is now illegal.

The Press-Telegram article concludes by pointing out a recent editorial in The Wall Street Journal that said unionization would give the Teamsters enormous bargaining leverage over work rules and pay, sharply raising the cost of moving goods, as well as the power to shut down ports in a strike. According to The Journal, the response of trade groups would be to divert cargo to Mexico or Canada.
Trucking Supports Our Military Personnel During Deployment
Our citizen-soldiers in the National Guard or Reserves that have been deployed abroad should not come home and face a battle to get their job back, Lt. Col. David L. “Duke” Ellington (ret.) said in a Freight Public Policy Blog on January, 11, 2010.

“As if the stress of a combat zone is not enough, some Guard and Reserve members also suffer financial hardships due to their service. This happens when their military pay while on deployment is less than that which they were making in their private industry job. Worse yet, even though federal law mandates that an employer must provide re-employment at a similar level and pay to returning employees, some Guard and Reserve members come back, find their employers have abandoned them, and have to fight to get their job back — a travesty that was brought to light by the TV newsmagazine “60 Minutes,” said Ellington.

Ellington, a personnel supervisor for
Con-way Freight’s Indianapolis service center, said his company believes it is their duty to show citizen soldiers the respect, admiration and support they deserve. “At any one time we may have as many as 100 employees on active deployment. While on leave for deployment, the families of these service men and women continue to receive company medical benefits. In the case where the deployed-employee’s military pay is less than their Con-way pay, the company makes up the difference,” said Ellington.

“Upon return, these employees have access to resources and counseling under the company’s health plan to help them deal with the stresses of their deployment and reintegrate into society.  And finally, the job they had when they went on deployment is there for them when they come home,” said Ellington.

In addition to Con-way’s efforts, the ATA is working with the Army Reserve to help recruit and retain reservists with truck driving skills, and to help truck drivers leaving the military to find jobs with trucking companies. Con-way and ATA hope that all of us participate in supporting those who protect our freedoms. These efforts make a huge difference in the lives of our men and women in the military.
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