[House Report 106-381]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



106th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session                                                    106-381

======================================================================



 
PROVIDING FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 2679, THE MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY 
                              ACT OF 1999

                                _______
                                

  October 13, 1999.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 
                                printed

                                _______


   Mr. Sessions, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                       [To accompany H. Res. 329]

    The Committee on Rules, having had under consideration 
House Resolution 329, by a nonrecord vote, report the same to 
the House with the recommendation that the resolution be 
adopted.

                  SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS OF RESOLUTION

    The resolution provides for the consideration of H.R. 2679, 
the ``Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1999,'' under an open rule. 
The rule provides one hour of general debate divided equally 
between the chairman and ranking minority member of the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
    The rule waives all points of order against the bill and 
against its consideration. The rule provides that the amendment 
printed in part A of this report shall be considered as 
adopted, and that the bill, as amended, shall be open to 
amendment by title.
    The rule also provides for the consideration, before any 
other amendment, of the (manager's) amendment printed in part B 
of this report, which shall be considered as read, may amend 
portions of the bill not yet read for amendment, and shall not 
be subject to a division of the question. Clause 7 of rule XVI 
(prohibiting non-germane amendments) is waived against the 
amendment printed in part B of this report.
    The rule allows the Chairman of the Committee on the Whole 
to postpone votes during consideration of the bill, and to 
reduce voting time to five minutes on a postponed question if 
the vote follows a fifteen minute vote. Members who have pre-
printed their amendments in the Record prior to their 
consideration will be given priority in recognition to offer 
their amendments if otherwise consistent with House rules. 
Finally, the rule provides for one motion to recommit, with or 
without instructions.

  summary of amendments to h.r. 2679, the motor carrier safety act of 
                                  1999

(Summaries provided by the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee)


                                 PART A


Amendments Considered as Adopted Upon Adoption of the Rule

    Strikes all funding provisions and corresponding reductions 
in the obligation ceiling in H.R. 2679 for fiscal year 2000, to 
conform to the recently enacted FY 2000 DOT Appropriations Act.
    Changes the nonguaranteed amounts of motor carrier safety 
grant funding for fiscal years 2001 through 2003 from 
nonguaranteed contract authority to authorizations for 
discretionary appropriations

                                 PART B


Amendment Made in Order Under the Rule

            Shuster: Managers' Amendment
    Modifies the terms and conditions under which a person may 
be assessed the maximum civil penalties for violations of 
Federal motor carrier safety laws.
    Adds a provision (section 210) to authorize the DOT to 
place a truck out of service upon determining that the truck is 
operating without the required registration or operating beyond 
the scope of its registration, and to authorize DOT and the 
U.S. Customs Service to deny entry to the U.S. to any truck 
operating without a copy of its registration documentation.
    Adds a provision (section 211) authorizing the DOT to 
suspend the registration of a motor carrier for failure to pay 
any civil penalty for violations of Federal motor carrier 
safety laws within 180 days or under the terms of an approved 
payment plan.
    Adds a provision (section 212) modifying a current 
requirement that States, as a condition of receiving motor 
carrier safety grant funds, cooperate with DOT in enforcing 
Federal registration and financial responsibility requirements.
    Adds a provision (section 213) striking the current 3-year 
renewal process for agreements regarding certain collective 
activities.
    Adds a provision (section 214) clarifying the current 
standard under which DOT may put a truck, driver, or motor 
carrier's operations out of service upon finding that the 
truck, driver, or carrier's operations constitute an imminent 
hazard.
    Adds a provision (section 215) prohibiting a motor carrier 
from operating in interstate commerce if the carrier fails to 
pay any civil penalty for violations of Federal motor carrier 
safety laws within 180 days or under the terms of an approved 
payment plan.
    Adds a provision (section 216) making a number of 
amendments to the current household goods laws; it corrects an 
error in the definition of ``household goods;'' increases the 
current dollar level, from $1,000 to $5,000, of funding 
disputes concerning household goods movers that must go to 
binding arbitration; and directs GAO to study on enforcement of 
Federal household goods consumer protection requirements.
    Adds a provision (section 217) terminating the current 
Single State Registration System as of January 1, 2002, and 
providing that the Unified Carrier Registry shall be the 
exclusive registration system for motor carriers operating only 
in interstate commerce as of January 1, 2002.
    Adds a provision (section 218) establishing civil penalties 
and permitting the disqualification of foreign carriers that 
intentionally operate without authority, before the 
implementation of NAFTA, outside the boundaries of a commercial 
zone along the U.S.-Mexico border.
    Adds a provision (section 219) directing DOT to study the 
merits of requiring that any verified positive drug test 
results of a truck driver be reported to the driver's State of 
licensure, and that all prospective employers query the State 
on whether the driver has any verified positive drug tests.
    The amendment also makes a number of technical and 
conforming changes to H.R. 2679, including clarifications of: 
the duties and functions of the new National Motor Carrier 
Administration; the Department's efforts to meet the goals of 
the motor carrier safety strategy; the maintenance of effort 
requirement for motor carrier safety grant funding; and 
interests to be represented on the motor carrier safety 
advisory committee.
                              ----------                              


                                 PART A

    Text of amendments considered as adopted upon adoption of 
the rule:
  Page 20, line 8, strike ``shall be available'' and insert 
``are authorized to be appropriated''.
  Page 20, lines 10 and 11, strike ``incur obligations to''.
  Page 20, line 12, strike ``2000'' and insert ``2001''.
  Page 20, strike lines 14 through 21.
  Page 20, line 22, strike ``(c)'' and insert ``(b)''.
  Page 21, line 6, strike ``title--'' and all that follows 
through ``for each'' on line 9 and insert ``title for each''.
  Page 21, line 16, strike ``subsection (a)--'' and all that 
follows through ``for each'' on line 19 and insert ``subsection 
(a) for each''.
  Page 21, line 21, strike ``(d)'' and insert ``(c)''.
  Page 21, line 22, after ``available by'' insert ``or under''.
  Page 22, line 10, strike ``(e)'' and insert ``(d)''.
  Page 22, line 18, after ``by'' insert ``or under''.
                              ----------                              


                                 PART B


An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Shuster of Pennsylvania or 
                               a Designee

  Page 7, line 8, before the semicolon insert the following:
        and by section 18 of the Noise Control Act of 1972 (42 
        U.S.C. 4917; 86 Stat. 1249-1250); except as otherwise 
        delegated by the Secretary to any agency of the 
        Department of Transportation other than the Federal 
        Highway Administration, as of October 8, 1999
  Page 13, after line 21, insert the following:
          (3) Savings clause.--In developing and assessing 
        progress toward meeting the measurable goals set forth 
        in this subsection, the Secretary and the Administrator 
        shall not take any action that would impinge on the due 
        process rights of motor carriers and drivers.
  Page 22, line 9, insert ``average'' before ``level''.
  Page 22, line 9, strike ``fiscal year'' and insert ``fiscal 
years 1997, 1998, and''.
  Page 24, line 9, after ``industry,'' insert ``representatives 
from law enforcement agencies of border States,''.
  Page 35, line 1, insert ``or renewing'' after ``issuing''.
  Page 36, line 10, strike ``5 percent of amounts'' and insert 
``the amount''.
  Page 36, line 11, strike ``(1)'' and insert ``(2)(B)''.
  Page 37, line 15, strike ``has previously'' and all that 
follows through line 17 and insert the following:
        is found to have committed a pattern of violations of 
        critical or acute regulations issued to carry out such 
        a law or to have previously committed the same or a 
        related violation of critical or acute regulations 
        issued to carry out such a law.
  Page 37, line 22, after the period insert the following:
In cases where a person has been found to have previously 
committed the same or a related violation of critical or acute 
regulations issued to carry out a law referred to in subsection 
(a), extraordinary circumstances may be found to exist when the 
Secretary determines that repetition of such violation does not 
demonstrate a failure to take appropriate remedial action.
  Page 40, after line 23, add the following:

SEC. 210. REGISTRATION ENFORCEMENT.

  Section 13902 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection 
        (f); and
          (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
  ``(e) Penalties for Failure To Comply with Registration 
Requirements.--In addition to other penalties available under 
law, motor carriers that fail to register their operations as 
required by this section or that operate beyond the scope of 
their registrations may be subject to the following penalties:
          ``(1) Out-of-service orders.--If, upon inspection or 
        investigation, the Secretary determines that a motor 
        vehicle providing transportation requiring registration 
        under this section is operating without a registration 
        or beyond the scope of its registration, the Secretary 
        may order the vehicle out-of-service. Subsequent to the 
        issuance of the out-of-service order, the Secretary 
        shall provide an opportunity for review in accordance 
        with section 554 of title 5; except that such review 
        shall occur not later than 10 days after issuance of 
        such order.
          ``(2) Permission for operations.--A person domiciled 
        in a country contiguous to the United States with 
        respect to which an action under subsection (c)(1)(A) 
        or (c)(1)(B) is in effect and providing transportation 
        for which registration is required under this section 
        shall maintain evidence of such registration in the 
        motor vehicle when the person is providing the 
        transportation. The Secretary shall not permit the 
        operation in interstate commerce in the United States 
        of any motor vehicle in which there is not a copy of 
        the registration issued pursuant to this section.''.

SEC. 211. REVOCATION OF REGISTRATION.

  Section 13905(c) of title 49, United States Code is amended--
          (1) by inserting ``(1) In general.--'' before ``On 
        application'';
          (2) by inserting ``(A)'' before ``suspend'';
          (3) by striking the period at the end of the second 
        sentence and inserting ``; and (B) suspend, amend, or 
        revoke any part of the registration of a motor carrier, 
        broker, or freight forwarder (i) for failure to pay a 
        civil penalty imposed under chapter 5, 51, 149, or 311 
        of this title, or (ii) for failure to arrange and abide 
        by an acceptable payment plan for such civil penalty, 
        within 180 days of the time specified by order of the 
        Secretary for the paymentof such penalty. Subparagraph 
(B) shall not apply to any person who is unable to pay a civil penalty 
due to bankruptcy reorganization.
          ``(2) Regulations.--Not later than 12 months after 
        the date of enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary, 
        after notice and opportunity for public comment, shall 
        issue regulations to provide for the suspension, 
        amendment, or revocation of a registration under this 
        part for failure to pay a civil penalty as provided in 
        paragraph (1)(B).''; and
          (4) by indenting paragraph (1) (as designated by 
        paragraph (1) of this section) and aligning such 
        paragraph with paragraph (2) of such section (as added 
        by paragraph (3) of this section).

SEC. 212. STATE COOPERATION IN REGISTRATION ENFORCEMENT.

  Section 31102(b)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended--
          (1) by aligning subparagraph (A) with subparagraph 
        (B) of such section; and
          (2) by striking subparagraph (R) and inserting the 
        following:
                  ``(R) ensures that the State will cooperate 
                in the enforcement of registration requirements 
                under section 13902 and financial 
                responsibility requirements under sections 
                13906, 31138, and 31139 and regulations issued 
                thereunder;''

SEC. 213. EXPIRATION OF APPROVALS.

  Section 13703 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by striking subsection (d); and
          (2) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), (g), and 
        (h) as subsections (d), (e), (f), and (g) respectively.

SEC. 214. IMMINENT HAZARD.

  Section 521(b)(5)(B) of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ``is likely to result in'' and inserting 
``substantially increases the likelihood of''.

SEC. 215. PROHIBITED TRANSPORTATION BY COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE 
                    OPERATORS.

  Section 521(b) of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by redesignating paragraphs (8) through (13) as 
        paragraphs (9) through (14), respectively; and
          (2) by inserting after paragraph (7) the following:
          ``(8) Prohibition operation in interstate commerce 
        after nonpayment of penalties.--
                  ``(A) In general.--An owner or operator of a 
                commercial motor vehicle against whom a civil 
                penalty is assessed under this chapter or 
                chapters 51, 149, 311 of this title and who 
                does not pay such penalty or fails to arrange 
                and abide by an acceptable payment plan for 
                such civil penalty may not operate in 
                interstate commerce beginning on the 181st day 
                after the date specified by order of the 
                Secretary for payment of such penalty. This 
                paragraph shall not apply to any person who is 
                unable to pay a civil penalty due to bankruptcy 
                reorganization.
                  ``(B) Regulations.--Not later than 12 months 
                after the date of enactment of the Motor 
                Carrier Safety Act of 1999, the Secretary, 
                after notice and an opportunity for public 
                comment, shall issue regulations setting forth 
                procedures for ordering commercial motor 
                vehicle owners and operators delinquent in 
                paying civil penalties to cease operations 
                until payment has been made.''.

SEC. 216. HOUSEHOLD GOODS AMENDMENTS.

  (a) Definition of Household Goods.--Section 13102(10)(A) of 
title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking ``, 
including'' and all that follows through ``dwelling,'' and 
inserting ``, except such term does not include property moving 
from a factory or store, other than property that the 
householder has purchased with the intent to use in his or her 
dwelling and is transported at the request of, and the 
transportation charges are paid to the carrier by, the 
householder;''.
  (b) Arbitration Requirements.--Section 14708(b)(6) of such 
title is amended by striking ``$1,000'' each place it appears 
and inserting ``$5,000''.
  (c) Study of Enforcement of Consumer Protection Rules in the 
Household Goods Moving Industry.--The Comptroller General shall 
conduct a study of the effectiveness of the Department of 
Transportation's enforcement of household goods consumer 
protection rules under title 49, United States Code. The study 
shall also include a review of other potential methods of 
enforcing such rules, including allowing States to enforce such 
rules.

SEC. 217. REGISTRATION OF MOTOR CARRIERS.

  (a) Registration of Motor Carriers by a State.--
          (1) Interim rule.--Section 14504(b) of title 49, 
        United States Code, is amended--
                  (A) in the first sentence by striking ``The'' 
                and inserting ``Until January 1, 2002, the''; 
                and
                  (B) in the second sentence by striking 
                ``When'' and inserting ``Until January 1, 2002, 
                when''.
          (2) Repeal.--Effective January 1, 2002, section 14504 
        of such title and the item relating to such section in 
        the analysis for chapter 145 of such title are 
        repealed.
  (b) Comprehensive Registration.--Section 13908 of such title 
is amended--
          (1) in the first sentence of subsection (a) by 
        inserting ``the requirements of section 13304,'' after 
        ``this chapter,'';
          (2) by striking the last sentence of subsection (a);
          (3) in subsection (b)--
                  (A) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), and (3); 
                and
                  (B) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), and 
                (6) as paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), 
                respectively;
          (4) in subsection (c) by striking ``cover'' and 
        inserting ``equal as nearly as possible''; and
          (5) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the 
        following:
  ``(d) State Registration Programs.--Effective January 1, 
2002, it shall be an unreasonable burden on interstate commerce 
for any State or political subdivision thereof, or any 
political authority of 2 or more States, to require a motor 
carrier operating in interstate commerce and providing 
transportation in such State or States to, or to collect fees 
to--
          ``(1) register its interstate operating authority;
          ``(2) file information on its interstate Federal 
        financial responsibility; or
          ``(3) designate its service of process agent.''.
  (c) Deadline.--Section 13908(e) of such title is amended--
          (1) by striking ``Not later than 24 months after 
        January 1, 1996,'' and inserting ``By January 1, 
        2002,'';
          (2) by inserting ``and'' after the semicolon at the 
        end of paragraph (1);
          (3) by striking paragraph (2); and
          (4) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2).
  (d) Conforming Amendment.--Section 13304(a) of such title is 
amended by striking ``and each State'' and all that follows 
through ``filed with it''.

SEC. 218. FOREIGN MOTOR CARRIER PENALTIES AND DISQUALIFICATIONS.

  (a) General Rule.--Subject to subsections (b) and (c), a 
foreign motor carrier or foreign motor private carrier (as such 
terms are defined under section 13102 of title 49, United 
States Code) that operates without authority, before the 
implementation of the land transportation provisions of the 
North American Free Trade Agreement, outside the boundaries of 
a commercial zone along the United States-Mexico border (as 
such zones were defined on December 31, 1995) shall be liable 
to the United States for a civil penalty and shall be 
disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle anywhere 
within the United States as provided in subsections (b) and 
(c).
  (b) Penalty for Intentional Violation.--The civil penalty for 
an intentional violation of subsection (a) by a carrier shall 
not be more than $10,000 and may include a disqualification 
from operating a commercial motor vehicle anywhere within the 
United States for a period of not more than 6 months.
  (c) Penalty for Pattern of Intentional Violations.--The civil 
penalty for a pattern of intentional violations of subsection 
(a) by a carrier shall not be more than $25,000 and the carrier 
shall be disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle 
anywhere within the United States and the disqualification may 
be permanent.
  (d) Savings Clause.--No provision of this section may be 
enforced if it is inconsistent with any international agreement 
of the United States.
  (e) Acts of Employees.--The actions of any employee driver of 
a foreign motor carrier or foreign motor private carrier 
committed without the knowledge of the carrier or committed 
unintentionally shall not be grounds for penalty or 
disqualification under this section.

SEC. 219. TEST RESULTS STUDY.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary of Transportation shall 
conduct a study of the feasibility and merits of--
          (1) requiring medical review officers to report all 
        verified positive controlled substances test results on 
        any driver subject to controlled substances testing 
        under part 382 of title 49, Code of Federal 
        Regulations, including the identity of each person 
        tested and each controlled substance found, to the 
        State that issued the driver's commercial driver's 
        license; and
          (2) requiring all prospective employers, before 
        hiring any driver, to query the State that issued the 
        driver's commercial driver's license on whether the 
        State has on record any verified positive controlled 
        substances test on such driver.
  (b) Study Factors.--In carrying out the study under this 
section, the Secretary shall assess--
          (1) methods for safeguarding the confidentiality of 
        verified positive controlled substances test results;
          (2) the costs, benefits, and safety impacts of 
        requiring States to maintain records of verified 
        positive controlled substances test results; and
          (3) whether a process should be established to allow 
        drivers--
                  (A) to correct errors in their records; and
                  (B) to expunge information from their records 
                after a reasonable period of time.
  (c) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
report on the study carried out under this section, together 
with such recommendations as the Secretary determines 
appropriate.
  Conform the table of contents of the bill accordingly.

                                  
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