The Port of Long Beach was scheduled on Tuesday, Feb. 19 to consider a requirement that truck drivers entering the port meet a series of restrictive measures. This meeting is an apparent reversal of previous intentions to delay consideration of the program until March.

The port’s harbor commission is scheduled to meet at 1 p.m. PST. on Tuesday, Feb. 19. The meeting is scheduled to be webcast on the port’s www.polb.com Web site. The Port of Long Beach may be contacted by calling 562-590-4121.

Since November, the Twin ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles have each adopted two previous portions of a clean truck program, which charge $35 per 20-foot equivalent container unit to replace old engines and a ban on old trucks beginning in fall 2008 before requiring all trucks to meet 2007 truck emission standards by 2012.

The most recent proposed concessionaire program was released on Friday, Feb. 15, and includes several new details that have received little public discussion, but appear to be a break from a strictly employee-only driver plan favored by the Teamsters Union and the Port of Los Angeles.

Owner-operators and other contracted drivers would be allowed entry by the proposal, but only if the drivers meet several stipulations.

A one-truck operation would pay $750 for a five-year concessionaire license if the port approved that carrier, including $100 per truck per year and a one-time $250 fee. Each concessionaire must also prove that health insurance is available to all its drivers and tag vehicles with radio-frequency identification devices “so the port can monitor compliance.”

In addition, an anti-terror provision would require truck owners to make drivers open up cabs for inspection upon the port’s request.

The proposal has reportedly sparked protests from OOIDA and from Teamsters supporters such as Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello – who planned to appear at a noon rally by proponents of an employee-only plan.

OOIDA has told port officials and the Federal Maritime Commission of its concerns that the plan’s decal requirement is unconstitutional and that the plan would shut out long-haul owner operators who make occasional port deliveries. The FMC is responsible for ensuring that ports do not restrict the free flow of interstate commerce.

OOIDA also believes other ports could follow the L.A. and Long Beach port example, which could lead to problems for owner operators and long-haul truckers without port access.

The Port of Los Angeles is considering adoption of a similar plan that would deny entry to owner operators entirely.

Commissioners for the Port of Los Angeles are scheduled to meet on Thursday, Feb. 21, although a meeting agenda posted Tuesday did not include the clean truck program.

Long Beach port officials posted notice of the commission’s Tuesday meeting late in the week before the holiday weekend.

– By Charlie Morasch, staff writer
charlie_morasch@landlinemag.com