重型卡车成为不道德行为的目标
新法案的条款包括禁止在重型卡车上使用防盗装置，除非执法部门要求。
密西西比州立法者通过一项将于 7 月 1 日生效的新法律，对以重型卡车为目标的强制性拖车公司进行了打击。4 月 19 日，州长 Tate Reeves 签署了一项广泛的新法律，该法律不仅将规范非自愿拖车和商用机动车收费，还将设立咨询委员会，建立争议解决程序，要求拖车警告标志，并禁止在重型卡车上使用防盗装置，除非执法部门要求。
参议院法案 2635 由参议员 Jenifer Branning (R) 在立法机构发起，她是一名律师和企业主，担任公路和运输委员会主席，也是政府结构委员会副主席。该法案随后在州众议院轻松通过，并在参议院毫无异议地获得批准。咨询委员会将设定最高拖车费率并审查发票纠纷等，同时努力保护信誉良好的拖车公司。将针对拖车和救援服务公司的违规行为制定新的纪律程序，包括暂停或从执法拖车名单中移除获批公司。
“强制性拖车是一种恶劣的做法，不仅破坏了我们州的供应链，而且每次不必要的拖车都会让密西西比州的卡车车主损失数千美元，”密西西比州卡车运输协会主席 Hal Miller 说。 “我们感谢密西西比州立法者倾听我们对这种不公平策略的担忧，我们感谢里夫斯州长迅速签署该法案。我们期待继续与州领导人合作，进行促进正义、公平和安全的常识性改革。”MTA 和密西西比拖车协会在起草该法案时提出了建议。
卡车运输的影响
在密西西比州，卡车运输业在经济中发挥着重要作用，雇用了 82,000 名工人。密西西比州 85% 以上的社区完全依靠卡车来接收货物。新法律还规定，拖车公司在将商用机动车连接到拖车进行非自愿拖车之前，必须记录车辆的状况和拖车原因，并从特定角度拍摄至少四张车辆照片。
另一项针对执法人员的条款列出了他们在执勤和参与拖车事件时被禁止采取的一系列行动。具体而言，他们在值班期间推荐拖车公司或拥有拖车公司的财务利益时，收受任何报酬或奖励都是违法的。
“强制性拖车公司用虚高、过高和欺诈性的发票扣押设备和货物，玷污了整个拖车行业的声誉。他们利用卡车运输业太久了，我们拒绝继续支付这些赎金，”美国卡车运输协会主席 Chris Spear 在回应这项法律时表示。“ATA 的州协会联合会准备通过在与拖车有关的州和地方法律中注入更多的责任和公平性来反击针对我们行业的不道德公司。”
该法律定于 2029 年 7 月 1 日失效。
3 月 22 日，佛罗里达州州长 Ron DeSantis 签署了一项法案，改革佛罗里达州卡车运输协会倡导的强制性做法。 FTA 首席执行官 Alix Miller 称赞这项新立法是“佛罗里达州卡车运输业、全国卡车运输业和汽车公众的巨大胜利，全国卡车运输业的发票高达 20 万美元，而汽车公众则是掠夺性拖车公司的受害者。”
美国运输研究所最近的一项研究表明，最常见的掠夺性拖车行为是收取过高的费用（近 83% 的汽车运输公司都遇到过这种情况）和不必要的额外服务费（10 家运输公司中有 8 家遇到过这种情况）。大多数运输公司都遇到过其他滥用拖车行为，例如卡车释放/进入延迟、无故扣押卡车、误报拖车是双方同意的以及货物释放延迟。
New Mississippi Law Targets Predatory Towers
Heavy Trucks a Target of Unscrupulous Practice
Mississippi lawmakers dealt a blow to predatory towing companies that target heavy trucks with a new law that will take effect July 1.
Gov. Tate Reeves on April 19 signed an expansive new law that not only will regulate nonconsensual towing and charges for commercial motor vehicles but also creates an advisory board, establishes a dispute resolution process, requires tow warning signage and bans the use of immobilization devices being placed on heavy trucks except when requested by law enforcement.
Senate Bill 2635 was sponsored in the Legislature by Sen. Jenifer Branning (R), an attorney and business owner who chairs the Highways and Transportation Committee and is vice chair of the Government Structure Committee. The bill then passed easily in the state House of Representatives and was approved unchallenged in Senate.
The advisory committee will set maximum towing rates and review invoice disputes, among other things, while working to protect reputable towing companies. New disciplinary procedures to be created for violations by towing and recovery service companies will include suspension or removal of approved companies from law enforcement tow lists.
“Predatory towing is an egregious practice that not only disrupts our state’s supply chain, but also costs Mississippi truck owners thousands of dollars for each unwanted tow,” said Hal Miller, president of the Mississippi Trucking Association. “We are grateful to Mississippi legislators for listening to our concerns about this unfair tactic, and we thank Gov. Reeves for swiftly signing this bill into law. We look forward to our continued partnership with our state’s leaders on common-sense reforms that promote justice, fairness and safety.”
MTA and the Mississippi Towing Association provided recommendations when the legislation was being drafted.
Trucking's Impact
In Mississippi, the trucking industry plays a significant role in the economy and employs 82,000 workers. More than 85% of Mississippi communities rely exclusively on trucks to receive goods.
The new law also mandates that a towing company before connecting a commercial motor vehicle to a tow truck for a nonconsensual tow must document the vehicle’s condition and reason for the tow and take at least four photographs of the vehicle from specific angles.
Another provision aimed at law enforcement officers lists a series of actions they are prohibited from taking while on duty and involved in a towing incident. Specifically, it will be illegal for them to receive any compensation or incentive while recommending a towing company while on duty, or from having a financial interest in a towing company.
“Predatory towing companies that hold equipment and cargo hostage with inflated, excessive and fraudulent invoices tarnish the reputation of the entire towing sector. They have taken advantage of the trucking industry for far too long, and we refuse to continue making these ransom payments any longer,” American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear said in reaction to the law. “ATA’s federation of state associations is prepared to fight back against unscrupulous companies that target our industry by injecting more accountability and fairness in state and local laws pertaining to towing.”
The law is scheduled to sunset July 1, 2029.
On March 22, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill reforming predatory practices that had been championed by the Florida Trucking Association. Alix Miller, CEO of FTA, hailed the new legislation as “a huge victory for trucking in Florida, the trucking industry nationally, who have seen invoices as high as $200,000, and the motoring public, who fall victim to predatory towing companies.”
A recent study by the American Transportation Research Institute determined that the most common predatory towing practices are charging excessive rates (experienced by nearly 83% of motor carriers) and unnecessary extra service charges (which happened to eight out of 10 carriers). A majority of carriers encountered other abusive towing practices such as truck releases/access delays, truck seizures without cause, tows misreported as consensual and delays in cargo releases.