View as Webpage | March 20, 2025

MAINE & MMTA NEWS

MMTA Annual Membership Meeting April 9th

Mark your calendars to join your fellow truckers at the April 9, 2025 MMTA Annual Membership and Board meetings starting at 9am. Click on the agenda links (right) to see what we will discuss, but we hope you can join us for breakfast, coffee and trucking updates – and we encourage you to bring someone who might benefit from the networking opportunity.


See you on April 9th at the MMTA office in Augusta!

Membership Meeting Agenda
Board Meeting Agenda

John W. Austin Memorial Scholarship Fund – Application Now Open

MMTA



The John W. Austin Memorial Scholarship Fund has grown over the years and now awards up to nine recipients a one-time scholarship for up to $2,500 each. The application deadline is May 1st and will be accepted online only.


The criteria to be selected for one of the nine scholarships reflect an emphasis on careers and instruction specific to the trucking industry in an attempt to focus on technical training. See below for the qualifications and requirements for applicants.


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PTSC & TDC COMPETITION REGISTRATION OPENS

MMTA


The 2025 Maine Professional Truck Driving Championships (to be held at Dysart’s in Hermon) and the 2025 Maine Professional Technician Skills Competition (to be held at EMCC in Bangor) will both be held on May 17, 2025 – a day that we have termed “CHAMPIONSHIP SATURDAY”.


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Watch: Todd Cotier named 49th CCJ Career Leadership Award recipient

CCJ


Todd Cotier was named the 2025 CCJ Career Leadership Award Recipient for his lifelong dedication to fleet maintenance and leadership in the trucking industry. Cotier, the shop manager for Bison Transport USA, has spent his entire 43-year career with the same company, originally joining Hartt Transportation in 1982 before its acquisition by Bison in 2022.


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NATIONAL NEWS

Trump EPA Takes Aim at Climate Rules, Including in Trucking

Transport Topics


The Trump administration is launching a sweeping overhaul of U.S. environmental mandates in a campaign it billed as the “biggest deregulatory action” of its kind in U.S. history.


The Environmental Protection Agency said March 12 that it will “reconsider” a host of Obama- and Biden-era regulations ranging from chemical safety to pollution curbs as it makes good on President Donald Trump’s pledge to speed U.S. energy development. It also described the effort as “historic actions” that “will roll back trillions in regulatory costs and hidden taxes on U.S. families.”


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The unknown of the 2025 freight economy

CCJ


Tariffs. That word is all over the news of late, and it’s something the nation’s top economist in the trucking sector called a “very fluid situation” Monday at the Truckload Carriers Association annual convention held in Phoenix.


Bob Costello, chief economist and senior vice president of international trade and security policy at American Trucking Associations, told the crowd during his 2025 Economic Industry Review that tariffs will have a number of impacts on carriers, including a steep increase in the cost of equipment, but one of the biggest impacts is one many in the trucking industry may not consider: the potential hike in ocean vessel port call fees.


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U.S. Treasury reinstates business-owner reporting requirement

CCJ


After nearly a year of back and forth amid legal challenges, a U.S. District Court in Texas has lifted an injunction that will now allow the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to enforce the Corporate Transparency Act.


In doing so, “beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) are once again back in effect,” FinCEN said in a notice published Feb. 18.


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TANY gratified to see federal action on congestion pricing, more work needed

The Trucker


NEW YORK — The Trucking Association of New York (TANY) has long voiced its concerns about congestion pricing.


“…we are gratified to see that concern echoed in (Thursday’s) letter from Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy,” TANY said in a media release. “As we argued in our litigation challenging the program, congestion pricing and its lack of parity has unfairly – and we believe, illegally – disproportionately burdened the trucking industry.


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Cargo theft reaching record levels, prompting calls for congressional action

TruckingDive


Trucking, railroad and shipper representatives raised the alarm about the rise of cargo theft affecting U.S. supply chains during a congressional hearing last week.


Leaders from BNSF, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Tanager Logistics and Academy Sports and Outdoors urged lawmakers to step up enforcement during a Senate subcommittee hearing on Feb. 27.


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Double Brokering Scams Continue to Target Trucking

Transport Topics


Brokers make a distinction between co-brokering, done legitimately as a necessity in a fast-paced business environment, and double-brokering, done surreptitiously, often by fraudsters intending to steal freight.


Carriers and brokerages may have co-­brokering agreements that require specific procedures if they are going to re-broker freight, said Zak Bowyer, vice president of sales support operations for Total Quality Logistics.


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Truck parking funding legislation reintroduced in Congress

CCJ


“I grew up in a family trucking business,” said Bost. “I know firsthand how difficult, and oftentimes dangerous, it can be when America’s truckers are forced to push that extra mile in search of a safe place to park. By expanding access to parking options for truckers, we are making our roads safer for all commuters and ensuring that goods and supplies are shipped to market in the most efficient way possible. This is a matter of public safety for everyone; and I’m committed to do all I can to drive this legislation over the finish line.”


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The ATA's Regulatory Agenda Under Trump 2.0

Heavy Duty Trucking


The new Trump administration is not the same administration as the first four years of Donald Trump, but from a policy perspective, one of the parallels is deregulation. 


The American Trucking Associations has already been talking to the administration about addressing unrealistic greenhouse gas rules – but there also are new rules the association will be pushing for, such as automatic emergency braking.


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2025 International Roadcheck is scheduled for May 13-15

Fleet Owner


This year, International Roadcheck will focus on drivers’ records of duty status and tires.


The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s International Roadcheck is scheduled for May 13-15. International Roadcheck is a high-visibility, high-volume commercial motor vehicle and driver inspection and regulatory compliance enforcement initiative that takes place over three days in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S.


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MMTA DRIVERS OF THE MONTH (mmta.com/DOM)

UPCOMING MMTA TRAINING & EVENTS

Defensive Driving Training

April 4, 2025

8:00am - 1:00pm

MMTA Office, Augusta

FMI and Registration

MMTA Annual Membership & Board Meetings

April 9, 2025

9:00am

MMTA Office, Augusta

Surviving a Compliance Review

April 11, 2025

8:30am - noon

MMTA Office, Augusta

FMI and Registration

Thank you MMTA Annual Sponsors
Zero percent loans for approved CDL school training
MMTA
Students attending approved CDL schools are eligible to apply for tuition loans to attain their Class A or Class B Commercial Driver’s License at an amazing ZERO percent interest.

MAINE MOTOR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION www.mmta.com
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