A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, Feb. 21 that the state of New Jersey illegally discriminated against interstate commerce when it adopted regulations in 1999 that require double-trailer truck combinations and 102-inch-wide tractor trailers traveling through New Jersey but without an origin or destination there to use only the national network of interstate highways.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, upholding a lower court decision, concluded that the regulations “favor instate businesses over those out-of-state businesses that are neither buying nor selling goods in New Jersey by imposing economic burdens on the out-of-state interests while not imposing similar burdens on the instate interests.”
The American Trucking Associations and U.S. Xpress sued New Jersey officials soon after the regulations were adopted, and in March 2004 a federal judge declared the regulations to be discriminatory and blocked their enforcement.
For a copy of the appeals court decision, click here.
