HR 1756 - NAFTA Trucking Safety Act of 2007

110th CONGRESS
1st Session

H. R. 1756

To prohibit Mexico-domiciled motor carriers from operating beyond United States municipalities and commercial zones on the United States-Mexico border until certain conditions are met to ensure the safety of such operations.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 29, 2007

Mr. HUNTER (for himself, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. POE, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. GARY G. MILLER of California, Mr. BERRY, Mr. BOYD of Florida, and Mr. HAYES) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on Homeland Security, Judiciary, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `NAFTA Trucking Safety Act of 2007'.

SEC. 2. OPERATIONS OF MEXICO-DOMICILED MOTOR CARRIERS IN THE UNITED STATES.

(a) Terms and Conditions- No Mexico-domiciled motor carrier shall be granted authority to operate beyond United States municipalities and commercial zones on the United States-Mexico border until the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security submit to Congress a joint certification that each of the following conditions has been met:

(1) The Secretary of Transportation has published in the Federal Register--

(A) a list of all Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations;

(B) an identification for each of the regulations whether the Secretary will--

(i) require a Mexico-domiciled motor carrier, commercial motor vehicle, or driver to comply with the regulation; or

(ii) be accepting compliance by the carrier, commercial motor vehicle, or driver with a Mexican statute, rule, or regulation (including commercial driver's license requirements) as the equivalent to compliance with the regulation; and

(C) for each regulation for which compliance with a Mexican statute, rule, or regulation will be accepted as described in subparagraph (B)(ii), a citation to and the English translation of the Mexican statute, rule, or regulation.

(2) The Secretary of Transportation has published in the Federal Register--

(A) a list of all of the enforcement tools, databases, processes, and conditions required of, and made available by law to, Federal and State motor carrier safety enforcement personnel; and

(B) the results of an analysis conducted by the Secretary as to whether such tools are available to provide at least the same level of enforcement capability toward Mexico-domiciled motor carriers and their drivers as is currently applied to United States-domiciled motor carriers and their drivers.

(3) The Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security have implemented a plan to effectively and regularly monitor and enforce United States immigration and customs regulations that pertain to international traffic under the North American Free Trade Agreement in all areas of the United States that Mexico-domiciled motor carriers will be permitted to operate.

(4) The Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security have adopted penalties for anyone who arranges, facilitates, or directs a Mexico-domiciled motor carrier's pick-up and delivery of a load within the United States in violation of United States immigration and customs laws or section 365.501(b) of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations.

(5) The Secretary of Homeland Security and Secretary of Transportation have published jointly in the Federal Register--

(A) a certification that the driver, criminal, and security databases used in Mexico to verify a person's identification, driving record, criminal history, and risk to homeland security are fully equivalent to those used in the United States for the same purposes;

(B) documentation verifying the equivalency of the Mexican databases described in subparagraph (A); and

(C) a certification that all Federal and State motor carrier enforcement personnel who will come in contact with Mexico-domiciled motor carrier drivers within the United States have the same access to the Mexican databases described in subparagraph (A) for performing checks on such drivers as they do to databases used in the United States for performing checks on United States-domiciled motor carrier drivers.

(6) The Inspector General of the Department of Transportation has submitted to Congress a report that independently verifies compliance with each condition listed in section 350 of the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002 (Public Law 107-87; 115 Stat. 864).

(7) The Secretary of Transportation has submitted to Congress a plan to enforce the English language proficiency requirement of section 391.11(b)(2) of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, including an identification of the enforcement actions that Federal and State law enforcement personnel will take upon a finding of noncompliance with such requirement.

(b) Statutory Construction- The requirements of this section shall be in addition to any other limitation or requirement contained in Federal law that applies to the authority of a Mexico-domiciled motor carrier to operate beyond United States municipalities and commercial zones on the United States-Mexico border.

END