Two US Senators have introduced a piece of legislation which is aimed at helping trucking operators in the states recover the skyrocketing cost of fuel from their customers.
Senators Olympia J.Snowe and Sherrod Brown last week introduced the ‘Trust in Reliable Understanding of Consumer Costs (TRUCC) Act which will help fleet operators to recover fuel costs by providing a clear line item delineating the fuel surcharge in any contract with small business carriers and would ensure that the right entity is the recipient of the fuel surcharge.
A statement from Senator Brown says that tens of thousands of small operators will find it economically unfeasible to continue business operations without the ability to recoup fuel costs.
“There is currently no uniform fuel surcharge standard for the trucking industry, so fuel surcharges must be negotiated individually,” Senator Brown says.
“This leaving truckers vulnerable to opportunistic intermediaries who are inflating their own coffers at the expense of small business carriers.”
The bill has been criticised by transportation rate analysts in the US, with some calling it ‘the worst piece of transport legislation of the new millennium’ because it fails to understand that no one is forcing small operators to move loads.
In the US, retail prices for diesel currently average around $4 (US) per gallon.