The initial draft of a House of Representatives spending bill released Wednesday, June 26, includes several major trucking related issues, not the least of which is major funding for truck parking.
The House Appropriations Committee's 2025 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) funding bill includes $200 million for truck parking. It also includes prohibitions on:
- the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration mandating speed limiters on heavy-duty trucks
- on requiring electronic logging devices for livestock haulers
- on congestion pricing plans similar to the one proposed for New York City, but blocked byGov. Kathy Hochul
- on driver-facing cameras in the struggling apprentice program for under-21-year-old drivers
- on efforts by California to seek waivers of meal and rest break provisions
- efforts by the Federal Highway Safety Administration to impose greenhouse gas emissions measures on departments of transportation
The bill was to be marked up today, and is expected to be voted on by the full committee the week of June 8, when Congress returns from its July Fourth holiday break.
Trucking's major advocacy groups have praised the legislation.
Todd Spencer, president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association said, "As a truck driver, I can tell you firsthand that when truckers don’t have a safe place to park, we are put in a no-win situation. We must either continue to drive while fatigued or out of legal driving time, or park in an undesignated and unsafe location like the side of the road or abandoned lot. It forces truck drivers to make a choice between safety and following federal hours-of-service rules. OOIDA, and the broad industry coalition we are proud to lead thank the House appropriators for taking concrete steps to resolve an issue that has plagued our industry for decades.”
The American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear had similar praise. He said, "The severe shortage of truck parking places an enormous burden on truck drivers, who often don’t know if they will be able to find a safe place to sleep when they finish their shift. This significant investment to expand parking capacity would help alleviate stress on truck drivers, move freight more efficiently, and make the roadways safer for all motorists. We thank the members of the House Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee for prioritizing this funding that will benefit truck drivers and our supply chain, and we are especially appreciative of the decisive leadership of Congressman Womack for ensuring this provision was incorporated in the final bill.”
Trucking's issues included in the bill have a long way to go to become the law of the land. This bill is part of the overall funding process for the government's 2025 fiscal year, a difficult process in any year and even more so in this contentious presidential election year.
