U.S. House hammers cross-border truck plan

U.S. House hammers cross-border truck plan    A controversial Bush administration program that would allow Mexico-domiciled trucks access deep into the United States has been dealt a serious blow, with the U.S. House voting Tuesday to limit funding to the proposed program.
   The voice vote to amend the 2008 Transportation-Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill said: 'None of the funds made available under this act may be used to establish or implement a cross-border motor carrier demonstration or pilot project or program to allow Mexico-domiciled motor carriers to operate beyond the commercial zones on the United States-Mexico border.'
   Sponsored by Reps. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., Nancy Boyda, D-Kan., Gary Miller, R-Calif., and Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., the amendment is the third effort by Congressional representative to end the program before it begins.
   The U.S. Department of Transportation cross-border program began life in February when the agency announced that it would begin a one-year pilot program within several months to allow a U.S. government certified group of 100 Mexican trucking companies to operate beyond the current 20- to 25-mile commercial zones along the U.S. Southwest border.
   The opening of borders for trucks by 2000 was mandated under the 1993 North American Free Trade Agreement. After the U.S. government failed to implement the truck provisions regarding Mexico, a NAFTA tribunal declared in 2001 that the U.S. must meet the provisions of the treaty regarding Mexican vehicles. Despite this, legislation and litigation — under the guise of safety and labor concerns — has kept the Mexican trucks limited to the narrow commercial zones along the U.S./Mexico border.
   Given the nearly seven-year delay of implementing the NAFTA provisions, the DOT's announcement of the pilot program shocked many people. What followed were months of contentious public debate, Congressional legislation and lawsuits from business and civic groups to stop or slow the plan.
   The criticism culminated in late May, with Congress adding an amendment to an Iraq war funding bill that placed stringent criteria on any plan to allow Mexican trucks further egress into the United States. The bill passed the House by a vote of 280-142, and the Senate 80-14 and was signed by the president.
   Earlier this month a bipartisan group of more than 100 House members signed a letter delivered to the president expressing 'grave concerns' about the administration's continuing efforts to move the plan toward a launch date.
   Tuesday's amendment on the plan drew quick praise from the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union.
   The bill must still face a debate and vote in the Senate, be reconciled with the House version, and head to the White House for a signature.