Against the backdrop of a three-year-long freight recession, American Trucking Associations’ President and CEO Chris Spear highlighted some of the organization’s wins as the trucking industry ushers in a more trucking-friendly political and regulatory era.
“We are in a market situation where demand remains low, and capacity is far too high,” said Spear to fleet executives, state associations, and industry suppliers at the 2025 ATA Management Conference & Exhibition in San Diego. “We know what a challenge that is and continues to be for each of you. It underscores why your advocacy of the ATA policy agenda is more important now than ever before.”
Spear touted several legislative and regulatory wins in the first nine months of the 119th U.S. Congress and the second Trump administration. “President Trump and the Republican-led Congress have wasted zero time moving several ATA priority issues,” said Spear, including the elimination of California’s Advanced Clean Truck, Advanced Clean Fleet, and Low NOx regulations; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas III requirements; English Language Proficiency enforcement; entry-level driver training; cabotage; cargo theft; and the use of recreational marijuana. “We upended the Biden-Su assault on independent contractors and expanded workforce development opportunities, dropped federal legislation on lawsuit abuse… and ATA helped add yet another $200 million for truck parking. Huge wins, with much more to come.”
Spear said ATA’s most important initiative remaining in its crosshairs is EPA’s low-NOx rule. “This rule is effective, but it’s also untested and littered with several added costs per power unit that have little to no impact on the environment,” he said. “Our conversations with the EPA are ongoing, and we’re pushing for an immediate answer on their reopening, delaying, and changing the rule. We’ll keep you posted.
The need for tort reform and the impact of nuclear verdicts were hot topics at this year’s MC&E, and Spear said ATA’s state-level support in recent years has helped nearly 20 states pass legislation to reduce the financial impact on the trucking industry.
“This White House and Congress may well be in a position to help us push through some federal reforms, including a bill we had introduced last month that would move these frivolous state suits to a level playing field in federal court,” said Spear. “So for the first time, ATA is putting a secondary lawsuit abuse strategy to advance federal legislation into full motion, further kicking the plaintiffs’ bar to the curb.”
On the labor front, Spear highlighted the need to erase Biden-era independent contractor regulations and focus on attracting and retaining qualified and skilled drivers.
“We outright oppose any federal rule that intentionally wipes out individual choice, crushes opportunities, and sidelines hundreds of thousands of truckers who move our economy,” said Spear. “Having a rule we understand and can comply with will protect the more than 350,000 independent contractors who have a critical role in our industry.”
The driver shortage didn’t rank in the American Transportation Research Institute’s Top Industry Issues report for the first time in the survey’s 21-year history, but Spear said a relative shortage of talent remains, highlighted by recently publicized crashes of unqualified drivers in Florida and California.
“It’s about qualifications,” said Spear. “We don’t lack people with CDLs… what we lack is the number of qualified drivers who meet our high standards of professionalism and safety. Qualified means you can speak English, read road signs, understand safety rules, and respect our laws. Qualified means you are not abusing alcohol or using drugs. Qualified means you earned your CDL the right way, not through a rubber-stamped process in a state that looks the other way.
“The overwhelming majority of America’s 3.6 million professional truck drivers take immense pride in their work,” Spear continued. “They meet every requirement every day, and they move our economy forward with skill, **responsibility,
