New York state’s registration and decal fee for out-of-state trucks are “unconstitutional highway taxes,” the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association alleged in a class-action lawsuit filed with the state’s supreme court last week.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has issued a rule reaffirming that agency inspectors have the right to open in-transit packages that they suspect do not comply with hazmat regulations or present a potential safety hazard.

American Trucking Associations and several oil producer and user trade groups have asked an appeals court to reconsider a three-judge appeals panel’s ruling upholding California’s low-carbon fuel standard.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Oct. 1 announced 17 regulatory changes mandated by last year’s transportation law, ranging from increased civil penalties to expanding some of the agency’s power to more severely punish other regulatory violations.

The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission on Sept. 30 appealed a federal judge’s order to pay CRST Van Expedited Inc. $4.7 million in attorneys’ fees and expenses in connection with the agency’s 2007 class action sexual harassment lawsuit the judge called “frivolous.”

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration proposed a rule that would strip hazardous materials motor carriers their operating authority if they fail to pay civil penalties within 90 days.

After a nearly two-decade delay, federal regulators announced a final rule Sept. 24 that will prohibit commercial motor vehicle drivers from entering onto a highway-rail grade crossing unless there is sufficient space to drive completely through the crossing without stopping.

A federal appeals court has upheld a provision in California’s landmark 2007 global warming law requiring the oil industry to reduce the carbon content in diesel and gasoline fuels by at least 10% by 2020.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will not meet a congressionally mandated Sept. 30 deadline to complete a study of changes made to the 34-hour restart provision of the agency’s hours-of-service rule.