Single-Use Definition,  Revisions and Economics 101

The last California Transportation Permits Advisory Council (CTPAC) meeting was held on October 18, 2011 at the San Bernardino California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Facility. Discussed at this meeting were a number of significant issues that center on Caltrans’ definition of “single use” and what it considers minor revisions to existing policy. While the Caltrans representatives understand the potential financial impact to our industry, Caltrans is adamant that it will allow no flexibility when it comes to Caltrans’ definition of “single use.” Additionally, Caltrans and the industry representatives had a difference of opinion as to what constituted minor revisions versus substantial changes to existing policy. This difference of opinion is illustrated below by one of the recent CTPAC work group discussions regarding the compliance program.

The compliance program is broken down into two categories:

1. truck cranes and fixed loads vehicles, and
2. heavy haul equipment.

Recently, Caltrans consolidated these two categories into one without any industry review or comment.
The industry members present at this meeting reminded the Caltrans representatives that there were reasons for the two categories. (Actually, when the compliance program was first implemented, Caltrans felt that it was necessary to have separate categories because of the differences between truck cranes, fixed loads vehicles, and heavy-haul equipment.) When traveling, truck cranes, and fixed loads are permitted from the time they leave their yard until they return. However, in most instances, heavy-haul equipment is only permitted in one direction and returns unladen or vice versa. Heavy-haul also does not have the exposure that truck cranes and fixed loads do which was another reason for the two categories under the compliance program.

Another difference between the two categories is that for truck cranes and fixed loads, violation points are accumulated by each vehicle and applied to that specific vehicle, whereas for heavy-haul equipment, violation points are accumulated and applied to the company.
This consolidation by Caltrans took place without going through CTPAC, the method agreed upon by Caltrans and industry. For some reason Caltrans abandoned this long-agreed-to process.

Now more than ever, it is critical that all interested parties participate in the CTPAC meetings. Make your voice heard. The next CTPAC meeting is scheduled for February 22, 2012 at the California Trucking Association’s offices in Sacramento, California.

When Can a Vehicle Be Placed Back in Service After Receiving “Out-of-Service” Order?

What should you do if you find yourself in a situation where a California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer or any other local law enforcement officer has given one of your vehicles an out-of-service order?

One thing you should never do is leave without first getting an authorization to continue your travel from the CHP or municipality that issued the out-of-service order.

Recently, we assisted a member who was informed by his driver that a company vehicle had been placed out-of-service due to a dimensional error on one of the local agency permits for a route through the locality’s jurisdiction 30 miles from the vehicle’s current location.

In this situation, the out-of-service order was not due to a mechanical failure or an overweight load that had to be off-loaded. The carrier had obtained a rider or clarification for the permit that was issued incorrectly, which subsequently corrected the existing permit issued. However, our member did not want to leave the vehicle and the customer’s load on an unsecured onramp of the Interstate-80 over the three-day holiday weekend or create unnecessary exposure for the customer.

The driver of the vehicle was not cited because he had not violated anything yet. At that point, the officer placed our member’s vehicle out of service until our member’s permits were corrected and reissued, and until the CHP was rescheduled to escort the load. Since it was a holiday weekend, our member knew that it was going to be impossible to have his permit corrected until Monday for a move scheduled for that evening. The confusion was created because it was unclear if the vehicle had been placed out of service or was just temporarily shut down due to where the vehicle was parked, which was on a freeway ramp instead of a CHP inspection scale facility. (As you know, you do not leave a CHP inspection facility until you have cleared it through the scale office or until your paperwork is returned to you.) In this case, after reviewing the facts as they were presented to us, we felt it to be no more than a misunderstanding as to the officer’s expectations.

The CHP officer lives locally and realized the load was gone. Assuming the load had been delivered to its destination, the CHP officer thought that our member had disobeyed a directive by the CHP. The CHP officer immediately contacted Caltrans to file a complaint against the company’s permit privileges and was demanding an immediate two-week suspension. We contacted the CHP division lieutenant and requested an immediate meeting to discuss and resolve this unfortunate misunderstanding. We met with the area lieutenant and two of the officers, and after a 90-minute meeting, it was agreed that there could have been better communication between the involved parties. It was also agreed that there had been a misunderstanding as to what our member should have done in this situation. So, if you find yourself in a similar situation, give the CHP a call and keep a clear line of communication open as to what you are doing and why, and it should all work out. If not, I can help. The CHP agreed to notify Caltrans of the meeting’s outcome. Subsequently, Caltrans took the six points that were assessed to our member’s account off the record. For your reference, the permit classification and point system are listed below.

Permittee Classification

Permittees shall be classified according to the number of permits obtained in the latest 12-month period. The number shall be determined by totaling all single-trip, multi-trip, and annual permits. A value of 1 shall be assigned for each single-trip permit, 30 for each annual permit, and the actual count, not to exceed 30, for multi-trip permits. The sum of the permits shall determine the classification in accordance with the following chart.

If you are not sure how many points your company currently has, contact Kien Le at Caltrans Headquarters at (916) 654-3093. Mr. Le will be happy to help you. When the total points within this 12-month period reaches the number shown on the above table for your classification, you will receive a letter from Caltrans stating that you are getting close to being suspended for 1, 2, or even 3 weeks.  This means no Caltrans permits will be issued to you.

If you find yourself being placed out-of-service and want to avoid any unnecessary disruptions, stay in communication with the agency that put you out-of-service. Remember: Do not move the vehicle or leave until you have cleared your out-of-service status with the issuing agency.

City of LA Office of Finance $47,920 Business License Assessment Cleared

Not long ago, we were contacted by one of our members who had an issue with the City of Los Angeles Office of Finance. Our member had received an estimated assessment from 2003 forward (8 years) for not having a city business license. The estimated back fees and taxes the city wanted totaled $47,920.

Our member did have his place of business in the City limits. The first thing we observed was that the City was going back 8 years when reviewing records. (The Office of Finance may only go back 3 years.) As long as you have a motor carrier permit, a locality cannot charge an additional business license tax or fee as long as your trucking business does not do anything other than trucking, like sell material direct or manufacture something, etc. The company must only be involved with for-hire or proprietary trucking; any non-trucking related portions of a business would not be exempt. However, your office operations and expenses are included in the exemption.

We contacted the Office of Finance to remind them that they cannot continue to engage in this practice. After the Office of Finance reviewed the information, our member was cleared of the $47,920 assessment. If you are having a similar problem, please give us a call.

Greg Dineen & Associates

(760) 249-4376