It is amazing that the Rooters article completely avoided mentioning the key issue of this legislation.
The fact that this bill will allow Mexican truckers to compete with US long haul truckers.
This legislation will hurt millions of American truckers and Trucking companies.
I was under the impression that Mexican trucks were restricted to a certain radius within the USA.
I own a small trucking company in Arizona (10 refrigerated trucks). This will cause havoc as the government is now going to allow ALL Mexican trucks that agree to inspection, have the proper insurance and the proper EPA approved equipment to cross the border and go anyplace they want.
Diesel fuel in Mexico is $2.79 per gallon-a DOLLAR less than in the USA on average. AND the trucks come across the border carrying 450-500 gallons of fuel (two 150 gallon side tanks and another saddle tank on their deck plates). At 6 miles per gallon, these trucks carry enough fuel to haul a load of product from Mexico to NYC and return part of the way before they have to pay for US diesel fuel. Sure, they have to pay the road and fuel taxes for fuel they DID NOT buy in each state, but if I was saving $1.00 per gallon, I could donate quite a bit of money for road and fuel taxes to high tax states like ILL (.$38 per gallon for fuel tax and $.11 per mile road tax. The Mexican trucks will cut the rates as they did the previous time they were let into the country because their overhead is NOT what it is in the USA.
The initial pilot program was restricted to the BIG Mexican trucking companies, primarily dry van companies, hauling parts and supplies to manufacturing companies. Now it is ALL trucks that will be allowed to roam the USA freely.
That didn’t work out the best for either side because the amount of freight going BACK into Mexico was not sufficient to keep all the trucks loaded going back and forth. And there were inspection, log book and insurance problems to say the least.
But now, the new law will allow ALL trucks to come across the border more than 100 miles. So the normal food hauling process where the trucks bring the produce, shrimp and other seafood items from Mexico and cross dock the freight through a USDA inspection and then onto an American truck in Laredo, Nogales, Brownsville, Otay Mesa, etc. etc. will now come to an end. I am seriously concerned about the USDA inspections as well as loosing my small business.
The independent truckers of the USA hauling refrigerated food products are few and far between anymore. This may be the end of small, refrigerated food hauling companies. I know I can’t compete with the Mexicans and their cheap trucks, cheap fuel and cheap labor.