Teamsters' Hearing Set for Tuesday on Legality of Cross-Border Trucking |
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By: International Brotherhood of Teamsters Posted: 2008-02-12 03:42:30 |
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The Teamsters Union will argue Tuesday in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that the Bush administration broke the law when it opened the borders to trucks from Mexico in September.
Congress set safety requirements before the southern border could be opened to long-haul trucks. Those included upgrading inspection facilities, computer databases and state enforcement capacity. The requirements have not been met, according to the Transportation Department's own inspector general. The Transportation Department nonetheless opened the border as part of a pilot program on Sept. 6. A handful of trucking companies are now participating in the program. One Mexican trucking company, Trinity Industries de Mexico, dropped out after its safety record was disclosed to the court. Trinity received 1,123 safety violations in the year before the border was opened, or 112 violations per vehicle. The Teamsters, represented by Altshuler Berzon LLP, filed for an emergency injunction to prevent the pilot program from starting in August. That request was denied but the lawsuit was allowed to proceed. Congress passed another law in December that cut off funds for the program. The Teamsters will argue in court that Transportation Secretary Mary Peters broke the law when she announced she would not close the border. At least a hundred Teamsters are expected to rally outside the courthouse before the hearing. A family member of victims of an accident caused by a Mexican truck will speak to the crowd. David Jennings lost his mother, father and son after the truck suffered a catastrophic drive train failure -- something that could have been prevented had the truck been properly inspected at the San Diego border station. Also speaking at the rally will be officials from the Teamsters and the Sierra Club, another party to the lawsuit. Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. |
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