States would have an easier time permitting trucks weighing up to 100,000 pounds on interstate highways under a U.S. Senate bill introduced last month, its sponsor said.

The California Air Resources Board approved up to $40 million to promote the purchase of next-generation clean cars and trucks in the third year of its Air Quality Improvement Program.

The Minnesota Trucking Association has written to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, urging him “to fully engage” his department in the state government shutdown there in order to “ensure that the state is honoring its obligations as a safety and enforcement partner.”

House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica outlined a six-year, $230 billion transportation reauthorization plan that would sharply cut spending levels on road-related projects.

An anti-fraud bill introduced in Congress would raise the freight broker surety requirement to $100,000 and mandate that motor carriers who broker freight loads obtain separate broker authority.

The Minnesota state government shut down Friday morning, closing state highway rest areas and halting construction projects, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported.