April 23, 2013
Stephanie West
WASHINGTON, DC –The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is disappointed in the court’s decision upholding the legality of the pilot program to open our borders to unsafe Mexican trucks.
The Teamsters vowed to continue to fight to uphold safety standards on the highways of the USA. The Teamsters position is clear – there members who drive for a living should not have to put their lives at risk because dangerous trucks are allowed free use of roads in the United States.
The court found that Mexico-domiciled trucks don't have to comply with federal safety requirements for vehicles introduced into interstate commerce. The judges concluded those requirements don't apply to "foreign commerce." The IBT believes this conclusion is wrong and contradicts a previous D.C. Circuit opinion about safety regulations for tires: National Association of Motor Bus Owners v. Brinegar.
The court also found that it’s alright for some Mexican medical standards to be less stringent and some to be more stringent than U.S. standards. We argue that it matters that drivers are able to see red, yellow and green, a requirement in the U.S. but not in Mexico.
The IBT also disagreed with the courts conclusion that the U.S. Department of Transportation can be trusted to draw statistically valid conclusions from the pilot program about the safety of Mexican trucks. History has shown, and DOT has admitted, that it’s almost certain that very few Mexican carriers will participate in the program.
