NAII Warns NAFTA Funding Cuts Pose Road Hazard

Congressional efforts to block funding for additional border inspectors and facility improvements in anticipation of the opening of the U.S.-Mexican border under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) are a threat to safety on America’s highways, claims the National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII).

Responding to a recent amendment to the House Trans-portation Appropriations bill that limits new funding for the implementation of the free trade agreement, the NAII said border safety inspection infrastructure needs significant improvement in order to protect Americans from unsafe Mexican vehicles. David Golden, NAII director of commercial lines added, “Passage of a House amendment that would prevent funding for the processing of Mexican trucking applications for travel throughout the United States is a political strategy that may come back to haunt those who initiated it.”

Mexican trucks are currently confined to an area that reaches just 20-miles from the border. Under NAFTA, those trucks that meet federal and state standards would be allowed access to all U.S. highways. The Bush administration is committed to opening the border by January 2002. But according to the NAII, funds set aside in Bush’s proposed budget only provide for enough border safety inspectors to handle traffic at 1998 traffic
levels.

Citing a report by the Department of Transportation’s Inspector General (IG) that said a minimum of 139 federal inspectors are needed at the borders to handle safety inspections, Golden noted the IG’s estimate was based on 1998 traffic levels. The report did not account for increases in truck traffic since then or for anticipated increases in traffic when the border opens. As of March 2001, there were only 50 field inspectors with 10 authorized positions unfilled, the NAII said.

As early as 1995, then Texas Attorney General Dan Morales warned of the risks posed by Mexican trucks when permitted to travel freely across the borders and called for strict compliance by Mexican trucks with all Texas and U.S. laws and standards. “Because most NAFTA trade with Mexico goes through Texas, our state could soon become the testing ground for a dangerous experiment – the massive influx of oversized, unsafe Mexican trucks on our highways,” Morales said. “This experiment will use our roadways, our cars and our citizens as guinea pigs, with potentially devastating consequences. A single accident between an overweight Mexican truck and a Texas school bus or family car would be as tragic as it is unnecessary.”

The NAII called for the FMCSA to develop a detailed plan showing how it will keep roads safe when the border opens on Jan. 1, 2002. The group added that proper funding is the key to executing such a plan and insisted that preparation for the border opening must be a top priority at FMCSA.

According to the NAII, proposed rules call for a detailed compliance review within 18 months of FMCSA authorization to a Mexican motor carrier to enter the U.S.A motor carrier may retain operating authorization beyond 18 months without review if the agency is unable to complete a review by then. The NAII noted that FMCSA, which has requested 40 additional investigators for fiscal year 2002, is currently understaffed to handle such detailed reviews. Without the assurance of detailed compliance reviews, “roadside inspections become the main defense against unsafe trucks and unqualified drivers entering the country,” the NAII said. Here again, the FMCSA falls short on both personnel and facilities. According to the NAII, the additional people and facilities requested by FMCSA will help, but will not be sufficient to handle anticipated traffic levels.

Topics Mergers & Acquisitions USA Texas Trucking Mexico