Newly proposed federal legislation aims to dismantle what lawmakers call "predatory" commercial truck leasing arrangements, an issue that has been flagged numerous times over the years and dragged back into the spotlight recently by 60 Minutes' reporting on Elmhurst, Illinois-based Super Ego.
Embedded in the Building Unrivaled Infrastructure and Long-term Development for America’s 250th Act (BUILD America 250 Act) are provisions that would establish a strict federal oversight framework to crack down on lopsided carrier-driver agreements.
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President Todd Spencer told CCJ his organization welcomes news that lawmakers sought to tackle "the predatory lease-purchase schemes that have fleeced truck drivers for decades. These scams dangle the promise of ownership but leave drivers broke, trapped in debt, and kicked to the curb with nothing to show for it," he said. "These schemes represent the worst in trucking and the inclusion of this language in the highway bill is an absolute win for small business truckers."
If passed, the bill orders the Secretary of Transportation to issue formal regulations prohibiting these practices within two years of enactment. Specifically, the mandate directs the Secretary to issue regulations that "prohibit the use of predatory commercial motor vehicle lease-purchase programs by motor carriers" under federal jurisdiction.
The legislative text provides an explicit definition of what constitutes an illegal or predatory arrangement, taking aim at programs that strip drivers of financial control and long-term vehicle equity.
According to the bill, the term applies to situations "whereby the motor carrier controls the work, compensation, and debts of the driver, and the driver accrues no equity or is forced to give up equity accrued in the contracted truck." The definition encompasses the entire "framework of the motor carrier-driver relationship," stretching beyond basic contract language to police carrier recruitment, operational, tax, and financing practices.
To ensure enforcement, the bill imposes strict record-keeping obligations. Within one year of enactment, the Department of Transportation must issue regulations forcing carriers to maintain detailed data regarding driver outcomes.
The proposed bill requires the leasing company to fully disclose weekly compensation for drivers; average weekly mileage and the schedule for drivers; the number of drivers who enter into the arrangement each year; the number of drivers who complete the lease term; the number of drivers who buy out a truck; and the average for each deduction category in settlements, including fuel, insurance, registration, maintenance, and escrow.
60 Minutes spoke with seven drivers who claim Serbia-based Super Ego managers siphoned a range of hundreds to thousands of dollars from their pay in excessive leasing fees, insurance, and repairs.
Additionally, the bill seeks to bring transparency to the fine print facing incoming operators and instructs the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to publish and periodically update a standardized disclosure form template on its public-facing website, providing an easy-to-understand tool for drivers evaluating such contracts.
Truckload Carriers Association President Jim Mullen expressed concern to CCJ Monday about the lease-purchase provisions included in the current bill and noted that while abusive practices exist within this business model, "we question whether FMCSA has the statutory authority to regulate in this area, and we note that the agency lacks any enforcement mechanism to do so effectively.
"We are also concerned that this provision diverts the agency’s strapped resources from its core mission to promote highway safety," he said.
Regulators would also be empowered to take the fight public. The bill authorizes the DOT to launch a public awareness campaign utilizing the collected industry data to warn incoming drivers about potential pitfalls, distributing clear information on average driver pay, standard experiences, and the overall prevalence of predatory lease schemes.
