newsworthy
It’s doubtful that Justices Janice Rogers Brown, Thomas B. Griffith, and
A. Raymond Randolph have anything in common with rock musician
Tom Petty. But in ruling in early August to uphold virtually all of the
federal government’s regulations governing truck drivers’ operations,
the judges sent a message that could have been pulled from the title
of a popular Petty song: “Don’t Come Around Here No More!”
For the third time in a decade, the federal appeals court in
Washington, D.C., ruled on the legality of the government’s attempt
to exert greater control over truckers. This time, the court, in the
form of the three judges, spoke emphatically. They affirmed all of
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) 2011 driver hours-of-service (HOS) regulations, except for a provision requiring
a 30-minute break for local drivers (such as those that work for
express carriers).
Sean McNally, a spokesman for the American Trucking
Associations (ATA), which led the fight to overturn the rules, said it’s
unlikely the group will appeal the decision. Congress could intervene and incorporate driver rules into federal statute, which would
supersede the agency’s rules. However, that scenario is unlikely since
lawmakers have not acted in the past despite numerous opportunities to do so. In last year’s law reauthorizing the nation’s transport
funding programs, for example, Congress only ordered the FMCSA
to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of the rules. The analysis has not
been completed, and no one expects its findings to profoundly
change the game.
What does seem to have come to an end is the court’s patience
with the 10-year saga. In issuing the opinion, Justice Brown wrote, “It
is often said the third time’s a charm. That may well be true in this
case, the third of its kind to be considered [by the appeals court].”
The justices strongly implied that their ruling marks the end of
the road. “With one small exception (overturning the 30-minute
break for short-haul drivers), our decision today brings to an end
much of the permanent warfare surrounding the HOS rules,”
Justice Brown wrote.
After HOS court ruling, time for
trucking to hit the road
“You know what to expect, but until
you touch it and smell it, you just don’t get
it,” he said in an April 2010 cover story.
“Superstorm Sandy” that hit the New
York-New Jersey region in October 2012
was the last major disaster that ALAN was
involved in. Menzies told DC VELOCITY in
January that it would take the region
about three to five years to fully recover.
Menzies tirelessly globe-trotted to meet
with leaders of the logistics industry and
of relief organizations. He attended most
of the industry’s trade shows, often
accompanied by Kathy Fulton, his aide-de-camp who joined ALAN in June 2010
as director of operations. Fulton, a top IT
executive at Lakeland, Fla.-based third-party logistics company Saddle Creek
Corp., originally meant to stay with ALAN
for one year. She has never left.
Menzies’ passing comes as the organization has established itself as a major force
in the humanitarian logistics community.
Fulton has been named interim president,
with Mark Richards, an ALAN co-founder, serving as interim chairman.
Patrick Rofe, ALAN’s director of development, will be the contact for fund-raising,
resource development, marketing, and
communications.
For now, there is no comment on a permanent successor. And given the sudden
nature of Menzies’ death, it’s a subject that
nearly two months on, people still find
hard to broach. “We’re all devastated,”
Fulton said. ;
—Mark Solomon
BJ’s Wholesale Club has presented C.H. Robinson
Worldwide Inc. with its Perishable Vendor of the Year
Award. … Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Inc.
has announced the winners of its annual Supplier of the
Year Award: Aisin Drivetrain Inc., Camoplast Solideal,
Champion Graphics, Ecco Group, KYB Americas Corp.,
Pentzer Printing, Toyoshima Special Steel, and Wayne
Metals. … Genco was awarded the Best Third-Party Logistics
Provider (3PL) for Retail Supply Chains Award at the eyefor-
transport North American 2013 3PL Conference. … Toyota
Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc. presented Toyota Forklifts of
Atlanta with a new, equipped service van and an award for
implementing Toyota’s Aftersales Service Evaluation and
Certification (ASEC) Program. … Seegrid, a maker of robot-
ic industrial trucks, has honores Trilogiq USA, which imple-
ments material handling systems, with its first-ever Partner
Achievement Award. ... Southeastern Freight Lines, a
regional less-than-truckload (LTL) service provider, has
earned the LTL Carrier of the Year Award from Rheem
Water Heating Division for the fourth consecutive year.
accolades
