TIA Issues Statement on the INVEST Act

The House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee led by Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-4th/OR) released the INVEST Act on Friday, which is the surface transportation re-authorization bill. There are several provisions included in the legislation that TIA staff are keeping a close eye on that could potentially impact our members.

TIA has scored a major victory by having language included in the base text that requires the Department of Transportation to issue guidance to clarify the definition and roles of brokers and bona fide agents.

This has been a major issue for TIA members over the past few years as more and more dispatch services have entered the marketplace and have continued to illegally broker freight on behalf of multiple motor carriers. TIA firmly believes that a dispatch service can only be a bona fide agent for one motor carrier only and will work with the Agency to make sure this is the direction that is taken. TIA thanks Chairman DeFazio for including this important provision.

TIA received several major victories with the inclusion of key priorities and the omittance of any sort of rate transparency language that would be devastating to our industry. This proved to be another major win for the Association.

Here are key issues we are monitoring:

• A one-year mandate to finally fix CSA and move forward with an updated Safety Fitness Determination rulemaking that would amend the safety rating process and give brokers a red light / green light system in their carrier selection process.
• Language to address dispatch services and illegal brokerage activities.
• $1 billion in grant funding for States to address CMV trucking parking shortage.
• Requirements for a rule to be implemented on a reasonable amount of detention time a motor carrier can be subject to.
• Comprehensive study of the current hours-of-service rules. Development of a woman in trucking advisory board.
• Increasing minimum insurance for motor carriers from $750,000 to $2 million.
• Study on the impact of longer trains and accident and incident reports.
• Establishment of freight train safety standards for crew size, including a two-person mandate.

TIA is grateful for having a seat at the table. TIA will continue to work with the Committee in a bipartisan manner to hopefully include H.R. 3042 in the Bill later in the process. TIA is very pleased with securing these major victories in the released bill text.