OOIDA National Call to Action
March 29, 2007

Today, U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-CA, along with U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-OH, introduced HR1756, the NAFTA Trucking Safety Act of 2007.

This bill will slam the brakes on the DOT’s Mexican trucking pilot program.

The NAFTA Trucking Safety Act says that before the DOT can move forward with its pilot program these things must happen:

• All Mexico-domiciled trucks, trucking companies and drivers must be fully held to the same safety and security standards as American companies, trucks and drivers.
• The U.S. Department of Homeland Security must be ready to fully enforce immigration and customs laws (cabotage) that apply to Mexico-domiciled trucks and drivers. And they must put penalties in place for any shipper, broker or carrier who knowingly helps a Mexican trucker break cabotage laws.
• U.S. law enforcement must have the same capability to enforce laws applying to Mexican truck drivers as they do enforcing those applying to U.S. drivers.
• The DOT must prove that databases exist on Mexican drivers that are equal in quality and reliability as those on U.S. drivers. And it must be proved that law enforcement will have full access to those databases to ensure all Mexico-domiciled truck drivers on our highways are who they say they are, and are fully qualified to be here.
• The DOT must show Congress that it is able and willing to enforce English-language proficiency requirements.

Please call your U.S. Representative NOW to ask them to be a co-sponsor of Rep. Hunter’s NAFTA Trucking Safety Act of 2007!

Call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121, provide the operators with your home ZIP code and they will connect you with the office of your U.S. Representative.

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SAMPLE MESSAGE:

“I am from _________. I ask that Representative _________ sign on as a cosponsor to HR1756, the NAFTA Trucking Safety Act of 2007. ”
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Remember to always be courteous, but it never hurts to follow-up your call to a congressional office with another call the following day and to continue calling until you get the responses that you want from your elected representatives.

Taking a few minutes out of your day to make a phone call can make all the difference when your elected representatives have to decide how to vote or where to put the efforts.

If you have questions, do not hesitate to call the Association at 1-800-444-5791.

TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE OUR VOICES HEARD.

TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE CAPITOL HILL TAKE NOTICE.