Mexican Trucking Companies Allege U.S. Bias

A $4 billion class-action lawsuit was filed by 11 Mexican trucking companies on Tuesday, claiming the U.S. government has illegally denied them access to United States in accordance with the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Associated Press reported.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Brownsville, Texas, accuses several federal agencies -- including the U.S. Department of Transportation -- of violating Nafta by denying them permits to operate within the U.S. interior, AP said.

The suit also says that allowing Canadian firms more access than Mexican companies is a violation of the U.S. Constitution, and that U.S. officials discriminate against Mexicans nationals by denying Mexican truckers the ability to invest in, own or control trucking companies based in the United States.

A spokesman for the Transportation Department said Tuesday that he had no comment, AP said.

Also on Tuesday, President Bush signed into law a $59.6 billion transportation appropriations bill for fiscal 2002 that grants Mexican trucks access to U.S. highways provided they meet stringent safety provisions. (Click here for the related story.)

The $4 billion includes business and profits lost since 1995. The suit does not specify a dollar amount of damages sought, AP said.

The companies that filed the suit are Guillermo Berriochoa Lopez; Transportes Intermex, S.A de C.V.; S'Antonio Transportes, S.A. de C.V.; Jose Silvino Magana Lopez; Jose Alfredo Magana Lopez; Miguel Angel De La Rosa Sanchez; Servicio Tecnico Automotriz Perisur, S.A. de C.V.; Tomas De La Rosa Parra; Ernesto Vallet Haces; Max E. Barton; and Carlos Berriochoa. It was filed on behalf of at least 185 Mexican trucking concerns.

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