Expected Hours-of-Service Change Tops Agenda for Phoenix Meeting, ATA’s Leadership Says

This story appears in the Oct. 4 print edition of Transport Topics.

Changes to the federal truck driver hours-of-service rule are among many issues trucking executives are likely to focus on when American Trucking Associations’ members gather in Phoenix for their annual meeting, the federation’s chief executive officer told Transport Topics.

“We know that, while we’re there — or shortly thereafter — we’re going to get a glimpse of the new hours-of-service rule,” ATA President Bill Graves said in a Sept. 27 interview. “This is a very, very big deal.”

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration began the process of revising the rule last October, and the White House is currently reviewing the agency’s proposal.

“It is of critical importance to our fleets and to the shipper community, so we’re going to be talking a lot about that,” Graves said.

ATA’s annual Management Conference & Exhibition is scheduled for Oct. 16-19 at the Phoenix Convention Center.

Echoing Graves, ATA Chairman Tommy Hodges said the hours rule “is going to be a huge issue that we will all be talking about.”

“If the HOS changes dramatically, I think there’s going to be a call for ATA to lead the fight to see what we can do about that and see if we can maintain the status quo,” said Hodges, who also is chairman of Titan Transfer, Shelbyville, Tenn.

Barbara Windsor, president of Hahn Transportation Inc., New Market, Md., is expected to become the new ATA chair at the conclusion of the meeting.

Other issues on the federation’s plate include the ongoing litigation with the Port of Los Angeles over its clean-air program, which includes a ban on owner-operators from drayage work.

“That’s an issue that we’ve spent millions of ATA dollars defending — an issue that we keep having legal success [with], but never goes away,” Graves said. “We need to make sure our members understand why we continue spending the money we’re spending.”

A federal judge ruled in favor of the port in August, but ATA is appealing that decision.

There also is likely to be “further conversation about electronic logging — whether it’s formal conversation [or] it is something else — that we know is likely to be an issue,” Graves said. Two U.S. senators, backed by several ATA members, have called for a universal mandate for the technology.

Graves also pointed to a pair of panels on the future of trucks and engines as cornerstones of ATA’s agenda (see story, p. 46).

“It is a pretty big deal to understand how the engine builders and the truck manufacturers are going to produce compliant, fuel-efficient vehicles,” he said.

Within ATA itself, Graves said he hopes to be able to introduce a new senior vice president for advocacy at the meeting. The position has been vacant since June, when former top lobbyist Tim Lynch left.

All of ATA’s plans, he said, are set against the economic uncertainty and the possibility of political changes in the upcoming elections.

“It is hard to predict what the mood of the Congress and administration will be after this election,” Graves said. He added that if the Republicans make gains in the House and Senate as expected, the two parties could either continue to obstruct one another, or work toward bipartisan compromises.

Much of ATA’s agenda has been stalled by Congress’ failure to move a highway bill. In years past, the federation has put together policies — ranging from truck size and weight to safety issues — aimed at the highway bill.

“That part’s done. Now it is a matter of executing,” Graves said. “Some things are out of our control; You can’t force Congress to do an authorization, you just have to be prepared when they act.”

Fleet executives will be able to get a sense of the economic landscape at MCE during ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello’s “All Eyes on the Economy” panel discussion during the meeting.

Graves said the federation’s members were trying to prepare themselves to be “well-positioned for recovery when it comes.”

“We’re trying to get our associations’ house in order, both physically and operationally, and we’re trying to have the industry policy house in order,” he said, noting that the group’s focus on the hours rule, on the L.A. ports issue, and even on its staffing and buildings is part of taking a long-term view of the industry’s challenges.

“Protecting rates, routes and service has pretty long-term consequences. Changing the hours our drivers can drive has pretty long-term consequences. The fuel efficiency and reliability of our trucks has pretty long-term consequences. We’re doing some things that may have long-term consequences about how ATA operates as an organization,” he said.

Other features of the meeting will include an address by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), the minority whip in the Senate, and various educational sessions on technology, the CSA safety ratings system, labor law issues, health care and business best practices.