ORLANDO, Fla — American Trucking Associations is opening participation in its National Truck Driving Championships to members of affiliated state trucking associations who may not be ATA members, officials announced.

Larry Davis, executive director of the Ohio Trucking Association, will retire in January after lobbying for the industry for 22 years.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) vetoed a bill Sept. 9 that would have classified most port drayage and parcel truck drivers in the state as employees, and put the burden on carriers to prove that drivers are independent owner-operators, he said.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said it is considering a petition to exempt truck drivers hauling ready-mixed concrete from the new requirement that most drivers take a half-hour rest break before driving more than eight hours.

Motorists in California drove 84.7 billion miles in 2011, making it the busiest state that year in terms of vehicle mileage, the Federal Highway Administration said Monday.

The federal government is overhauling its system for trucking and bus company registration, in a move that will combine 16 forms that companies must complete into one Web-based electronic form, regulators said Thursday.

Federal regulators withdrew some portions of a rule they tried to finalize in June that would have made minor technical amendments to the upcoming greenhouse-gas emissions and fuel-efficiency standards for heavy trucks.

The White House Office of Management and Budget has approved a rule to streamline three federal motor carrier registration systems into one, the final step before the final rule can be published.