A long-time congressional critic of cross-border trucking programs has asked the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to address concerns about the program and introduced legislation to establish a free trade agreements review commission.

Rep. Peter DeFazio, (D-Ore.), said Mexico’s safety standards do not equal those of the United States and Mexican carriers operating beyond the border zone will hurt jobs.

The North American Free Trade Agreement stipulates the U.S. cannot require Mexican carriers take safety measures not required for U.S. carriers, FMCSA Administrator Anne Ferro told the Truckload Carriers Association last month. To monitor the participants’ safety, the FMCSA is proposing to utilize electronic on-board recorders with GPS capability both to track the vehicles of participating Mexican carriers and verify hours of service of their drivers.

An FMCSA spokesperson said the cost to outfit trucks with GPS under the previous program was $711,640.

According to the program’s 2002 interim final rule, Mexico filed complaints against the United States under NAFTA’s dispute resolution provisions. An international panel stated the United States might be justified in using different compliance methods for Mexican carriers than those used for U.S. and Canadian carriers. However, the methods must address legitimate safety concerns.

DeFazio said the U.S. should renegotiate NAFTA concerning the U.S. commitment to liberalize cross-border trucking. Also, while Mexico carriers will have access to the U.S. under the program, he said U.S. trucking firms are unlikely to enter the Mexican market because of crime concerns.