A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected a lower court’s preliminary injunction that blocked the immediate implementation of California’s Assembly Bill 5 law, which motor carriers have claimed would make use of independent contractors next to impossible.

The California Trucking Association continues to lay the legal groundwork to block the state from enforcing a law aimed at reclassifying owner-operators as motor carrier employees.

A federal judge in the Southern District Court of California on Dec. 31 issued a temporary restraining order against the implementation of California’s Assembly Bill 5, as it pertains to the trucking industry.

An association of small to medium-sized motor carriers has asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reject a decision last month by a federal district judge in California to dismiss a challenge to the so-called “ABC test,” which is used to decide if a contractor should be classified as an employee in California.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal by the California Trucking Association over the employment classification of truck drivers contracted by motor carriers.

With donations to help those affected by the recent California wildfires arriving from around the country, trucking fleets are bracing to help deliver supplies for relief efforts.

The California Trucking Association has named Shawn Yadon as its new chief executive officer.