Rep. Bill Shuster: ‘Going to Work Hard to See’ Final Highway Bill Reforms CSA
WASHINGTON — Rep. Bill Shuster indicated he will ensure reforms to a safety performance scoring program for motor carriers make it in a multiyear highway bill transportation leaders plan to unveil Nov. 30.
“As we go through the negotiations, we think that some of the reforms that we’ve put in there are positive,” Shuster (R-Pa.), chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure panel, told Transport Topics on Nov. 18.
A highway bill the House advanced Nov. 5 included would call on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to make “corrective actions” to its Compliance, Safety, Accountability scoring program. During a review of CSA by the National Research Council of the National Academies, certain scores would be removed from public view.
“That’s what the House position is, and we’re going to work hard to see that it’s there,” Shuster added, regarding the CSA reforms. A Senate version included a similar provision.
Many in the trucking sector are critical of the CSA scores, claiming they reflect inaccurately their firms' safety records. The Obama administration and proponents of the program defend the scores findings.
Shuster and top policymakers said they plan to unveil a final highway bill Nov. 30 and have it ready for President Obama’s desk before Dec. 4. That legislation could be the first multiyear highway bill to clear Congress in 10 years.
