Industry Leaders Head to San Diego for ATA Meeting
This story appears in the Oct. 6 print edition of Transport Topics.
Trucking executives meeting in San Diego this week at American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition to set the industry’s agenda for 2015 also will hear from several key federal government officials.
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy, Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), and opinion strategist Neil Newhouse are scheduled to attend the Oct. 4-7 event.
MC&E 2014: Complete coverage
Some of the hot-button issues to be taken up during the conference include highway funding, the economy, the driver shortage and changes to hours-of-service rules.
ATA President Bill Graves will present the State of the Industry address during the opening session on Oct. 6.
At the conclusion of the conference, Longistics Chairman Duane Long is due to become the next chairman of ATA. His Raleigh, North Carolina-based company provides trucking, warehousing and logistics operations. Long will succeed Philip Byrd Sr., CEO of Bulldog Hiway Express in Charleston, South Carolina.
The conference’s final day is also when the EPA’s McCarthy is slated to attend.
“The EPA is a very important agency to trucking,” said Graves, noting that with the upcoming second round of truck fuel-efficiency
standards “McCarthy’s attendance at MC&E is both timely and relevant to our industry.”
EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration were tasked by President Obama to issue new fuel-efficiency and greenhouse-gas-emissions standards for heavy- and medium-duty commercial trucks.
The agencies are proceeding in stages with its rulemakings. Phase 1 started Jan. 1 with a 3% tightening on carbon dioxide over the EPA estimate for the average heavy-duty truck engine made in 2010. The agency said that Phase 2, set to
be finalized by March 2016, also may include new regulatory standards for new trailers pulled by semi-tractors. A proposed rule will be issued in March.
“As a result, manufacturers of engines, chassis, vehicles and trailers may be required to incorporate GHG emissions-reducing and fuel-saving technologies,” EPA has said.
While at MC&E, McCarthy will help present the SmartWay Excellence Awards.
The Oct. 7 session will also feature a panel discussion about the effects of congestion on the trucking industry. The dialog brings together Tracy Rosser, senior vice president of transportation and supply chain services at Wal-Mart Stores Inc.; Kevin Knight, CEO of Knight Transportation Inc.; John Esparza, CEO of the Texas Trucking Association; Jim Ward, CEO of D.M. Bowman Inc.; Mark Watts, legislative advocate of Transportation California; American Transportation Research Institute President Rebecca Brewster; and Jeff Mason, ATA’s executive vice president of communications and public affairs.
The session, presented by Transport Topics and ATRI, is sponsored by Freightliner Trucks.
Included among the other high-profile events during the conference is a luncheon Oct. 5 focusing on the need for long-term highway funding solutions and the efforts to reverse the restart provision of the HOS rule that has been in place since July 2013.
Sen. Blunt will be the guest speaker at that luncheon, which will include additional regulatory, legislative and legal affairs updates from ATA officials.
Another conference highlight that day is the opening of the exhibit hall, where about 170 industry suppliers showcase the latest products to help fleets with everything from improving highway safety to boosting efficiency.
Newhouse, partner and co-founder of Public Opinion Strategies is set to participate in the opening session, sharing research on the upcoming midterm elections and public opinion polls related to the trucking industry.
Also that day, ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello will lead an economic discussion with John Felmy of the American Petroleum Institute, Jack Kleinhenz of the National Retail Federation and Chad Moutray of the National Association of Manufacturers.
And despite the packed agenda, MC&E also includes a few lighter moments:
• Journalist Jane Pauley will be the guest speaker at the spouse annual business meeting Oct. 7. Pauley, who recently wrote the book, Your Life Calling: Reimagining the Rest of Your Life, is a former “Today” show and “Dateline NBC” co-host.
• Grammy and Tony Award nominee Michael Cavanaugh will headline the annual banquet. He is best known for playing the piano and the lead vocals in the Broadway musical “Movin’ Out.”
