To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide a mandatory fuel surcharge for transportation provided by certain motor carriers, and for other purposes.

Summary: Motor Carrier Fuel Cost Equity Act of 2001 - Amends Federal transportation law to require any contract or agreement for truckload transportation or service regularly provided by a motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder subject to the Secretary of Transportation and the Surface Transportation Board to include a requirement to assess a payer of transportation charges a minimum surcharge for fuel when the current price of fuel surpasses the $1.10 per gallon benchmark price by $0.05 per gallon. Requires the surcharge to be the amount necessary to compensate the person responsible for paying for fuel for the amount of increase in its cost.Allows any motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder to include in any transportation contract or agreement a privately negotiated fuel cost adjustment provision designed to compensate the person responsible for paying for fuel for the increase in its cost.Requires any motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder providing transportation or service using motor vehicles not owned by it and using fuel not paid for by it to pass any fuel surcharge through to the person responsible for paying for fuel. Prohibits any reduction in compensatory transportation costs (other than the fuel surcharge) to, or the imposition of a fuel cost adjustment on, the payer of fuel for the purpose of adjusting for or avoiding the pass through or the payment of the fuel surcharge.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Motor Carrier Fuel Cost Equity Act 
of 2001''.

SEC. 2. MANDATORY FUEL SURCHARGE.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 137 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 13714. Fuel surcharge
    ``(a) Mandatory Fuel Surcharge.--
            ``(1) Establishment of surcharge.--Any contract or 
        agreement providing for truckload transportation or service 
        involving a motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder subject 
        to jurisdiction under chapter 135 who regularly provides such 
        transportation or service shall include a requirement to assess 
        a payer of transportation charges a minimum surcharge for fuel 
        used in the transportation provided to such payer commencing 
        when the current price of fuel surpasses, by $0.05 per gallon, 
        the benchmark price set forth in paragraph (2). The surcharge 
        assessed by the motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder 
        shall be calculated on the basis of mileage or percentage of 
        revenue (whichever basis the motor carrier, broker, or freight 
        forwarder elects) and shall be the amount necessary to 
        compensate the person responsible for paying for fuel for the 
        amount of increase in the cost of fuel.
            ``(2) Benchmark price.--The benchmark price referred to in 
        paragraph (1) shall be $1.10 per gallon.
    ``(b) Implementation.--The surcharge referred to in subsection 
(a)(1) shall be--
            ``(1) calculated on the date the shipment is tendered to 
        the motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder;
            ``(2) itemized separately on the motor carrier, broker, or 
        freight forwarder's invoices; and
            ``(3) paid by the payer of transportation charges.
    ``(c) Factors.--For purposes of calculating a surcharge under this 
section--
            ``(1) average fuel economy is 5 miles per gallon; and
            ``(2) mileage means the number of paid miles driven as 
        determined under the Department of Defense, Military Traffic 
        Management Command's `Defense Table of Official Distances' or 
        mileage guide established pursuant to section 13703 (a)(1)(D).
    ``(d) Limitation on Authority.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
of this part, enforcement of this section shall be through the private 
right of action provided in section 14704(a), and neither the Secretary 
of Transportation nor the Surface Transportation Board shall have 
regulatory or enforcement authority relating to provisions of this 
section.
``Sec. 13715. Negotiated fuel adjustments
    ``(a) In General.--Nothing in section 13714 shall be construed to 
abrogate provisions relating to fuel cost adjustments in any 
transportation contract or agreement in effect on the date of the 
enactment of the Motor Carrier Fuel Cost Equity Act of 2001 and any 
renewal of such a contract or agreement thereafter. Nothing in this 
section and sections 13714 and 14102 shall be construed to prohibit any 
motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder from including any 
privately negotiated fuel cost adjustment provision in any contract or 
agreement to provide transportation that is an amount necessary to 
compensate the person responsible for paying for fuel for the amount of 
increase in the cost of fuel.
    ``(b) Continuation of Authority.--Nothing in section 13714 shall 
impair the ability of any person to enter into any contract or 
agreement after the date of the enactment of the Motor Carrier Fuel 
Cost Equity Act of 2001 that provides for a fuel adjustment under this 
section or section 13714 during any period in which no fuel surcharge 
is required under section 13714.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 137 of such title 
is amended by adding at the end the following:

``13714. Fuel surcharge.
``13715. Negotiated fuel adjustments.''.

SEC. 3. MANDATORY PASS-THROUGH TO COST BEARER.

    Section 14102 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(c) Mandatory Pass-Through to Cost Bearer.--
            ``(1) In general.--A motor carrier, broker, or freight 
        forwarder providing transportation or service using motor 
        vehicles not owned by it and using fuel not paid for by it--
                    ``(A) shall pass through to the person responsible 
                for paying for fuel any fuel surcharge required by 
                section 13714 or provided for in transportation 
                contracts or agreements;
                    ``(B) shall disclose in writing to the equipment 
                lessor and lessee the amount of all freight rates and 
                charges and fuel surcharges applicable to such 
                transportation or service; and
                    ``(C) is prohibited from--
                            ``(i) intentionally reducing compensatory 
                        transportation costs (other than the fuel 
                        surcharge) to the person responsible for paying 
                        for fuel for the purpose of adjusting for or 
                        avoiding the pass through of the fuel 
                        surcharge; and
                            ``(ii) intentionally imposing a fuel cost 
                        adjustment in accordance with section 13715 for 
                        the purpose of avoiding any payment under this 
                        section or section 13714.
            ``(2) Limitation on authority.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of this part, enforcement of this section shall be 
        through the private right of action provided in section 
        14704(a), and neither the Secretary of Transportation nor the 
        Surface Transportation Board shall have regulatory or 
        enforcement authority relating to provisions of this 
        subsection.''.