Small Business Bill Includes Tax Benefits for Trucking

The Small Business Jobs Act now before Congress includes tax provisions that would benefit motor carriers.  Among them are extensions and expansions of the existing provisions that allow smaller carriers to (1) immediately
expense certain capital expenditures that would otherwise have to be depreciated and (2) take a 50 percent bonus depreciation on such expenditures as are not written off.

As to the first provision, the bill would increase from $250,000 to $500,000 the amount that a business can expense in tax years beginning in 2010 and 2011. As to the second, the existing bonus depreciation is extended
through 2010 tax years. Finally, a third provision, not in current law, would allow business owners to deduct in calculating self-employment tax the cost of health care they incur in 2010 to insure themselves and their families.

The Act (H.R. 5297) has passed the House of Representatives and is currently before the Senate, where it is expected to be voted on this week. ATA is working to ensure the bill's passage. ~Truckline

ATA Tells Senate to Say NO to a Low Carbon Fuel Standard

On July 23, ATA President and CEO Bill Graves wrote a letter to each Senator outlining the trucking industry’s concerns with a low carbon fuel standard (LCFS). The letter points out that an LCFS will not reduce carbon
emissions, but will increase the price of diesel fuel, adversely impact truck operability and jeopardize U.S. energy security.

The letter reiterates ATA’s support for reasonable carbon control measures, such as those outlined in ATA’s Sustainability Plan, and expresses the industry’s preference for addressing carbon emissions through costeffective
national fuel economy standards that are being developed jointly by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation.

While there is not enough support in the Senate to pass an energy bill with greenhouse gas control initiatives, ATA remains concerned that more narrow initiatives, such as an LCFS, could be added to a scaled down energy bill later
this year. ~Truckline

OSHA Head Urges Criminal Penalties for Worst Safety Violators

In a presentation to the American Society of Safety Engineers in Baltimore on June 14, Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, called for aggressive enforcement for flagrant violators of federal safety and health regulations. "It's an unfortunate fact that monetary penalties just aren't enough," he said. "We believe that nothing focuses the mind like the treat of doing time in prison, which is why we need criminal penalties for employers who are determined to gamble with their workers' live and consider it merely a cost of doing business when a worker dies on the job."

Behind-the-Wheel Training Programs Get Financial Boost

 Crowder College, Neosho, Missouri is one of seven community and technical colleges and two state government training facilities received a share of $1 million in Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration grants to enhance behind-the-wheel safety training courses for students enrolled in commercial driver’s license (CDL) training programs, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced on July 26th. 

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In November, FMCSA Will Begin Issuing CSA 2010 Warning Letters to Deficient Carriers…
ATA Business Solutions Can Help Your Company Successfully Meet CSA 2010 Requirements

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is looking at safety and how it will evaluate a carrier’s safety fitness in an entirely new way. Though the Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010) is still in the testing stage, all signs indicate it will begin rolling out nationwide in November 2010.  CSA 2010 will assess each carrier’s safety performance in seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs).

ATA offers safety products that can help you better understand and manage your company’s approach to each CSA 2010 BASIC.  This email focused on solutions to BASIC #1 Unsafe Driving:

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