'Blue-Green' Coalition Praises California Members of Congress for Taking Action to Empower America's Ports to Enact Environmentally and Economically Sustainable Clean Truck Programs

November 6, 2009

Two Dozen Legislators Urge an Update to Federal Transportation Law to Ensure Industry Polluters Can't Force Impoverished Workers to Pay the Cost of Replacing Old, Diesel-Spewing Fleets

LOS ANGELES & OAKLAND, Calif., Nov. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A coalition of over 100 environmental, public health, labor, faith-based and community groups today applauded Rep. Zoe Lofgren and 23 other California members of the U.S. House of Representatives for jointly pushing for a revision to a decades-old law that a trucking lobby has used to lower driver incomes and threaten the nation's most successful program for slashing diesel-truck emissions.

In a letter to the chairman of the House Transportation & Infrastructure committee, the lawmakers indicated their desire to protect the Port of Los Angeles' Clean Truck Program and permit officials in Oakland and around the country to enact similar operational requirements on port property to meet federal clean-air standards and improve safety, security and congestion.

"We thank our Members of Congress for refusing to let industry opponents roll back the stunning clean-up we have already made here in Southern California," said Angelo Logan of the East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, which represents low- income residents along heavily polluted truck, rail and transportation corridors. "The trucking companies cannot hide behind an arcane 20th century statute to evade responsibility for investing in cleaner, greener fleets and then stick workers and taxpayers with the bill."

In the letter to Rep. James Oberstar the lawmakers wrote: "As you consider transportation policies during this Congress, we urge you to allow California ports to implement and enforce critical truck management programs."

Noting that 50 percent of imports pass through California's ports, creating particularly acute challenges that have earned these trade hubs the notorious reputation as the place "where old trucks go to die," the Congressional leaders urged an amendment to the outdated Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act (FAAAA).

"[I]t is important for public ports to have the authority to reduce pollution and congestion while increasing safety and security from thousands of port trucks," the letter said. "We support reforms to the port trucking industry that reduce the health impacts from diesel truck pollution in surrounding port communities and improve working conditions and labor standards for port truck drivers."

The obscure law preempts the essential, sustainable features of the LA Clean Truck Program alleges a lawsuit filed by the American Trucking Association (ATA), which also opposes climate-change legislation and other clean-air regulations. The Virginia-based lobby obtained a preliminary injunction in April that threatens clean truck investment because low-wage contract drivers, rather than stable companies, would be on the hook financially for fleet turnover and proper maintenance of EPA compliant vehicles.

Partner organizations in the nationwide environmental-labor coalition have repeatedly warned this will force the thousands of immigrant workers behind the wheel - who average $10-11 an hour according to numerous studies - into near-certain bankruptcy, and ensures the nearly 6,000 clean new trucks that the Port of Los Angeles has put on the road today will become dirty again in a few years.

"The legal assault on the LA Clean Truck Program is having a chilling effect on the port driver workforce in Southern California and environmental clean-up efforts around the country," said Rome Aloise, President of Teamsters Joint Council 7, which represents roughly 100,000 Northern California transportation and other logistic workers based in the Bay Area where the ATA's litigation has forced officials to put its clean truck plan on hold. "We commend Rep. Lofgren for her strong leadership on this critical issue and are eager to work with these two dozen Congressional leaders to bring our laws into the 21st century to meet the needs of port workers, the community, and a more efficient, growing and responsible green trucking industry."

As a result, a growing movement of big city mayors, port authorities, and elected leaders at all levels have called on Congress to expand the FAAAA exceptions to federal preemption to include environmental, security and congestion programs.

Last month, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Newark Mayor Cory Booker announced their support for the legislative effort joining Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Broward County Mayor Sacy Ritter, the Port of Oakland, the Port of Los Angeles and the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey. The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) recently became the first air regulatory agency to echo the call on Congress to remove any doubt that local officials have the legal authority to address the market failures that have spiked public health and poverty statistics to crisis proportions.

The LA Clean Truck Program has also received public endorsements from then-Senator Barack Obama, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, California Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, 31 House California Democrats; Representative Jerrold Nadler

(D-NJ); and Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ).

The nationwide alliance of over 100 organizations known as the Coalition for Clean & Safe Ports on the West Coast, and the Coalition for Healthy Ports on the Eastern Seaboard has united groups as diverse as the New Jersey Environmental Federation, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Long Beach Alliance for Children with Asthma, the Teamsters, the American Lung Association of California, the Church Council of Greater Seattle, the Sierra Club, For a Better Bronx, and GreenFaith.

The Coalition for Clean & Safe Ports is a partnership of environmental, public health, community, labor and faith organizations that promote sustainable economic development at West Coast ports. We are working to make the port trucking system a less polluting, more competitive generator of good quality jobs for harbor-area residents. The Coalition for Healthy Ports is the sister alliance working to create cleaner, greener ports in New York and New Jersey. We are over 100 organizations strong nationwide.

SOURCE Coalition for Clean & Safe Ports