WASHINGTON, DC,
April 8, 2011
(Press Release) -
American Forest & Paper Association President and CEO Donna Harman today issued the following statement regarding introduction of the Safety & Efficient Transportation Act (SETA) in the U.S. Senate by Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), with co-sponsoring Senators Herb Kohl (D-Wisconsin), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Rob Portman (R-Ohio).
"The Safety & Efficient Transportation Act provides an opportunity to bring an outdated federal weight limit up to 21st Century standards. This legislation would give states the option to choose whether to allow for these trucks to add a sixth axle and increase the weight limit from 80,000 to 97,000 pounds on their interstates.
"Current law puts U.S. manufacturing and shipping industries at a competitive disadvantage to our trading partners. Technology has greatly improved to provide for the safe transport of trucks carrying higher weight loads in the 30 years since the law was enacted. It is illogical for trucks to be limited below their space capacity, leading to more trucks on the road, more emissions in the air and more fuel needlessly consumed. Small and large businesses alike are searching for ways to improve efficiency and effectiveness in their operations in order to save jobs, and this proposal would give much needed opportunity for such efficiencies to be realized.
"SETA is a win for U.S. competiveness, a win for our highway system, for driver safety, and for our environment. I applaud Senators Crapo, Kohl, Collins and Portman for introducing this vital legislation in the Senate."
The American Forest & Paper Association is the national trade association of the forest products industry, representing pulp, paper, packaging and wood products manufacturers, and forest landowners. Our companies make products essential for everyday life from renewable and recyclable resources that sustain the environment. The forest products industry accounts for approximately 5 percent of the total U.S. manufacturing GDP. Industry companies produce about $175 billion in products annually and employ nearly 900,000 men and women, exceeding employment levels in the automotive, chemicals and plastics industries. The industry meets a payroll of approximately $50 billion annually and is among the top 10 manufacturing sector employers in 47 states. Visit AF&PA online at www.afandpa.org.
