[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 133 (Monday, September 10, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11314-S11315]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            MEXICO TRUCKERS

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I wish to be heard on this Dorgan amendment, 
the pending amendment, with regard to the Mexican trucker demonstration 
project. I wish to speak on it because I was involved in it the last 
time this issue came up.
  I have always urged that we deal with this in a fair way and in a 
responsible way. We don't want unsafe trucks or unsafe drivers coming 
into our country, whether they are coming from Mexico or Canada. But I 
have always felt that maybe we had an attitude toward trucks coming in 
from Mexico; it was very different from those which might be coming 
from Canada. I think we need to have rules in place and we need to have 
proper precautions, but I think we also need to be rational and 
reasonable. If we don't have at least a demonstration project, what is 
going to happen when our trucks want to go to Mexico? I will guarantee 
you one thing: If I were the President of Mexico, I would say there are 
not going to be any American trucks coming down here. Can't we use some 
common sense? This is not some enemy satellite sitting on our border. 
This is a place where we can begin to make progress.
  I know it is easy to demagogue this issue and get into all kinds of 
flights of fancy about, oh, yes, this is the beginning of a 
superhighway coming from Mexico; that the border is just a bump in the 
road and this is part of the one nation movement in North America. I 
don't know where all this comes from. Maybe I am naive. I don't 
advocate that. But I think we are really turning this into another case 
of trying to make a bogeyman out of our neighbor to the south.
  I don't have a vested interest in this. I was in the trucking 
business once upon a time in my life. I know a little bit about 
trucking. This is not a case where my State is on the border and is 
going to be abused one way or the other. So I have the ability to try 
to look at this objectively and to ask that we try to make sense in how 
we deal with all of this.
  This is not a new issue. We have been working on this, planning for 
this, preparing for this for 14 years to make sure it is done properly, 
including proper inspections, proper requirements. There is a program 
we are trying to put in place which would be subject to an additional 
audit at 6 months and when the project concludes. Remember, it is a 
pilot program. We are not putting it in place in perpetuity. We want to 
check it and see how it works and if it is done correctly.
  Since 1982, trucks from Mexico have only been able to drive in a 25-
mile commercial zone along U.S. borders. Think about that. They can 
come across the border, and they must stay in a 25-mile commercial zone 
and then offload to U.S. trucks before they can come into the United 
States.
  The North American Free Trade Agreement contains a trucking provision 
that was put on hold in 1995 by President Clinton, and, without being 
critical of him, he wanted to make sure we had looked at it enough and 
that there were safety requirements, and so forth. At that time, I 
thought, frankly, he was probably doing the right thing. Then, in 2001, 
a NAFTA dispute resolution panel ruled the United States was violating 
NAFTA obligations by adopting a blanket ban on trucks from Mexico. So 
then we kind of got into a fight about it, and that is where I got 
directly involved, and that was in 2002 on the appropriations bill. It 
detailed, as a result--again, we didn't say we were going to do it 
regardless; we said, OK, we are going to try to find a way to do this, 
but we are going to have some specific requirements. We detailed 22 
safety requirements that had to be met prior to allowing trucks from 
Mexico to drive beyond the U.S. 25-mile commercial zones.

  Here are the 22 safety requirements and mandates we included in that 
bill. I am going to read every one of them because I want to make sure 
my colleagues understand that this is not something we are doing 
frivolously or carelessly. We had specific requirements, and they have 
been met:

       Establish mandatory pre-authority safety audits.
       Conduct at least 50 percent of the safety audits on-site in 
     Mexico.
       Issue permanent operating authority only to Mexican 
     trucking companies who pass safety compliance reviews.
       Conduct at least 50 percent of the compliance reviews on-
     site in Mexico--including any who do not receive an on-site 
     pre-authority audit.
       Check the validity of the driver's license every time a 
     truck comes across the border.

  Yes, we want these drivers to be licensed. I am sure that when we go 
forward with this, that some trucker gets in here with an unsafe truck 
or without a driver's license or with illegal immigrants in the belly 
of that truck, it will get huge coverage. I don't want any of that to 
happen. So we have these safety checks, and we have a check of the 
validity of the driver's license.

       Assign Mexican truck companies a distinct Department of 
     Transportation number.
       Inspect all trucks from Mexico that do not display the 
     current CVSA decal.
       Have State inspectors in the border States report any 
     violations of safety regulations by trucks from Mexico to 
     U.S. Federal authorities.
       Equip all U.S.-Mexico commercial border crossing with 
     weight scales--including weigh-in-motion systems at 5 of the 
     10 busiest crossings.
       Study the need for weigh-in-motion systems at all other 
     border crossings.
       Collect proof of insurance.
       Limit trucks from Mexico operating beyond the border zone 
     to cross the border only where a certified Federal or State 
     inspector is on duty.
       Limit trucks from Mexico operating beyond the border zone 
     to cross the border only where there is capacity to conduct 
     inspections and park out-of-service vehicles.

  We must ensure compliance of all--all--U.S. safety regulations by 
Mexican operators who wish to go beyond the border zones.

       Improve training and certification for border inspectors 
     and auditors.
       Study needed staffing along the border.
       Prohibit Mexican trucking companies from leasing vehicles 
     from other companies when they are suspended, restricted, or 
     limited from their right to operate in the U.S.
       Forbid foreign motor carriers from operating in the United 
     States if they have been found to have operated illegally in 
     the United States.
       Work with all State inspectors to take enforcement action 
     or notify U.S. DOT authorities when they discover safety 
     violations.
       Apply the same U.S. hazardous materials driver requirements 
     to drivers from Mexico hauling hazardous materials.
       Provide $54 million in Border Infrastructure Grants for 
     border improvements and construction.
       Conduct a comprehensive Inspector General's review--to be 
     certified by the Secretary--that determines if border 
     operations meet requirements--

  That are required.
  This is lengthy.
  Now, I believe it has been pointed out on the floor that the 
inspector general may have indicated: Well, it may not be possible to 
do all this. We may not be able to check every truck--let's see here. 
Any truck with a safety violation we stop until the problem is fixed.
  There are questions about do we have the infrastructure and 
capability to do that. But the specificity of the 22 mandates have been 
met, and these are the critical provisions that are important.
  The companies in Mexico must pass a safety audit by United States 
inspectors, including review of drivers' records, insurance policies, 
drug and alcohol testing, and vehicle inspection records. Every truck 
that crosses the border as part of the program will be checked every 
time it enters. There is a question about whether we can do that. 
Remember, this is temporary and a pilot program. We need to check every 
one of them. If we don't have the infrastructure to do that, we should 
add it.

[[Page S11315]]

  Any truck with a safety violation will be stopped until the problem 
is fixed. Yes, that ought to happen. So we have a very distinct list of 
items we are trying to do here.
  In the first 30 days of the program, 17 Mexican truck companies will 
be given operating authority. Additional companies will be added each 
month. So there is some order to this program.
  I say to my colleagues that this has been dealt with very 
methodically. The requirements of Congress have been met. It is a pilot 
program on a temporary basis with a 6-month audit. We ought to do this 
program.
  I cannot help but think that there is something more going on here 
than safety concerns. I do think there is an attitude: We don't want 
those Mexican truckdrivers up here. Sure, there are some who might not 
be as good as they should be, but that is true with American 
truckdrivers, too, on occasion. What about Canadian truckdrivers?
  I feel we are making a mistake if we try to stop this temporary pilot 
program, and I think it is going to seriously damage our ability to 
work with the Mexican Government, with their new President, in not only 
this area but a lot of other areas.
  I urge my colleagues to look carefully at what has been done by our 
Department of Transportation. Let's not assume the worst of our 
neighbors from Mexico. I have known a lot of truckers, and I know the 
kinds of problems one can have with trucking. But these are well-
intentioned, hard-working people. They are an important part of our 
economy, and we need to have free-flowing trade that benefits both 
countries, all countries in a way of which we can be proud.
  If we find a problem, fix it. But to just say no, we are going to 
stop it after 14 years of planning and preparation because some 
people--I don't know--don't want the competition? This is not an 
immigration issue. This is a transportation issue. We can do this. We 
can do it sensibly. But we should defeat the Dorgan amendment. We 
should allow the pilot program to go forward and make sure it is done 
properly.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Menendez). The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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