Protest, convoys, coalitions all demonstrate unity against ELD mandate

Individuals and groups of professional truckers protested, convoyed and visited lawmakers last week in well organized and peaceful demonstrations to make their voices heard coast to coast. The truckers are opposing an impending mandate coming Dec. 18 that forces tight-fisted electronic surveillance on a work force that must have flexibility.

Meanwhile, actions on other levels are upping the ante on a massive pushback of excessive regulations.

On Sept. 27, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and 30 other organizations spoke out against the ELD mandate. The briefing was held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The coalition includes professional trucker associations, agricultural interests, the SikhsPAC, the National Federation of Independent Business, National Motorist Association and many more.

On the heels of the coalition’s event, the White House Council of Economic Advisers released a 19-page statement on the “Growth Potential of Deregulation.” In short, the administration re-emphasized its push to reduce regulations and pointed straight at the immense impact suffered by small businesses.

“We completely agree with the White House’s statement,” said OOIDA Executive Vice President Todd Spencer. “It’s crucial to separate the intention of regulations from their actual impact on the economy and that excessive regulations have unnecessary costs with few benefits.”

The White House’s council called excessive regulation “a tax on the economy, costing the U.S. an average of 0.8 percent of GDP growth per year since 1980.” Pointing to the sharp increase in recent years – with approximately 500 new economically significant regulations created over the last eight years alone – the council posed its review. It finds that deregulation will stimulate U.S. GDP growth.

“Federal regulatory activity in the U.S. may have proliferated with the best of intentions, but the negative consequences of excessive, duplicative, or badly designed regulation are a tax on the U.S. economy,” the report states. It cites where past instances of deregulation have shown substantial gains to consumers and businesses in the economy.

“Deregulation can unleash the greater potential of the U.S. economy, spurring the innovation and economic growth necessary to keep the United States prosperous, and to empower its citizens with greater opportunities.”

On the same day the White House released the statement (Oct. 2, 2017), a Notice for Regulatory Review was published inviting the public to provide input on existing rules and other agency actions that are good candidates for repeal, replacement, suspension or modification.

In keeping with OOIDA’s Knock Out Bad Regs campaign, OOIDA encourages members to go this link and share their concerns about all trucking regulations.

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