Highway Bill Advances In The House

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a highway bill this week, after a lengthy and contentious mark-up. The committee rejected an amendment offered by Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) to add the Clean Ports Act to the highway bill. Rep. Nadler insisted that the amendment was necessary to ensure that the 6,000 new clean trucks at the Port of Los Angeles could be maintained. Rep. Laura Richardson (D-CA) also spoke in favor of the amendment. Rep. Gary Miller (R-CA) spoke effectively in opposition to the bill, saying it has nothing to do with the environment, but is meant to overturn a recent court ruling and will assist the Teamsters in their effort to unionize independent owner operators. The committee voted the amendment down.

• Harbor Maintenance Fee Trust Fund - The National Custom Broker and Forwarders Association of America  (NCBFAA) is a strong supporter of legislation introduced by Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA), the Realize America's Maritime Potential Act (the RAMP Act). Boustany's bill would force the government to spend the money it has collected from the harbor maintenance fee on badly needed harbor maintenance projects -- the purpose for which the fee was intended. There was an effort to include the RAMP Act in the House highway bill. Instead, the committee decided to include a watered down "Sense of Congress" provision that expresses the sense of Congress that the HMF Trust Fund is not being used for its intended purpose and that Congress should fully expend the amounts in the Trust Fund "to operate and maintain the Nation's navigation system." While this is a positive step, bringing attention to the growing HMF Trust Fund surplus while port dredging projects are neglected, it does not force appropriators to use the fee collections for its intended purpose.
  

• Motor Carrier Prevention Act - The committee did include a bill to require transportation brokers to register with the Federal Motor Carrier and Highway Administration (FMCHA) and satisfy financial security requirements. After NCBFAA pointed out that the bill was drafted too broadly, the committee included an exception for licensed customs brokers, ocean freight forwarders, NVOCCs and Indirect Air Carriers when arranging for inland transportation as part of an international through movement. This exception would assure that there would not be duplicate regulation of these entities. Technical fine-tuning of the language is required, however, before the provision fully accomplishes its purpose.

      The highway bill is expected to reach the House floor for a vote by mid-February, though it faces significant obstacles to passage.

Article Source
National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America

Response Party: Michael Swett
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