Port Drivers’ Bill of Rights Act of 2017

Summary: Port Drivers' Bill of Rights Act of 2017 This bill requires the Department of Transportation to establish a Truck Leasing Task Force to examine lease-to-own agreements entered into by commercial truck drivers. The task force must focus on: (1) the operation of agreements that drayage drivers have entered into, and (2) such agreements at the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach.  Additionally, the task force must create and submit a report to Congress on its findings.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Port Drivers' Bill of Rights Act of 
2017''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The labor of drayage and intermodal truck drivers is 
        vital to the movement of goods and to our Nation's economic 
        prosperity.
            (2) Independent studies have repeatedly documented the low 
        pay and rampant worker misclassification in the port drayage 
        and intermodal industries.
            (3) The Subcommittee on Highways and Transit of the House 
        Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a hearing on 
        May 5, 2010, on the negative economic and environmental impacts 
        of port trucking.
            (4) An investigation published in USA Today on June 16, 
        2017, titled ``Rigged'', detailed disturbing employer abuses 
        and called the work arrangements for many port truck drivers 
        modern-day indentured servitude.
            (5) The California Labor Commissioner has issued decisions 
        awarding over 400 port drivers in excess of $40 million in back 
        pay due to wage and hour violations.
            (6) Federal and State courts have consistently upheld the 
        California Labor Commissioner's authority to adjudicate these 
        claims and have rejected complaints that wage claims brought by 
        truck drivers with the Labor Commissioner are preempted by the 
        Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994.
            (7) The California Employment Development Department and 
        the New Jersey Department of Labor have awarded at least 50 
        port drivers unemployment and disability benefits.
            (8) Regions 21 and 5 of the National Labor Relations Board 
        have issued several complaints against port trucking companies 
        for allegedly committing unfair labor practices after 
        investigations determined port drivers were being 
        misclassified.
            (9) Drayage drivers at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long 
        Beach have engaged in at least 15 unfair labor practice strikes 
        over the past 3 years to protest misclassification, which have 
        caused picketing at marine terminals that delayed cargo and 
        created congestion.
            (10) Many stakeholders in the movement of goods and 
        licensed motor carriers, including beneficial cargo owners and 
        third-party logistics providers, contribute to negative working 
        conditions for port truck drivers.
            (11) Government officials have an opportunity and a 
        responsibility to improve the working conditions of port truck 
        drivers.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that truck drivers, including drayage 
drivers, have the right to--
            (1) be treated with honesty and respect;
            (2) have full-time work guarantee a basic standard of 
        living;
            (3) be covered by Federal, State, and local labor and 
        employment laws;
            (4) be covered by workplace safety and health laws;
            (5) be free from exploitative truck lease or rental 
        arrangements;
            (6) not be misclassified as independent contractors and 
        denied legal protections, benefits, and pay; and
            (7) bargain collectively for better wages and working 
        conditions.

SEC. 4. TRUCK LEASING TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation, in consultation 
with the Secretary of Labor, shall establish the Truck Leasing Task 
Force (hereinafter referred to as the ``Task Force'').
    (b) Membership.--The Secretary of Transportation shall select not 
more than 15 individuals to serve as members of the Task Force from the 
following groups:
            (1) Labor organizations.
            (2) The motor carrier industry.
            (3) Consumer protection groups.
            (4) Safety groups.
            (5) Members of the legal profession who specialize in 
        consumer finance issues.
    (c) Duties.--The Task Force shall examine ``lease-to-own'' 
agreements that commercial truck drivers have entered into, with a 
focus on--
            (1) the operation of agreements that drayage drivers have 
        entered into; and
            (2) such agreements at the Port of Los Angeles and the Port 
        of Long Beach.
    (d) Powers.--The Task Force may conduct site visits and field 
hearings, as necessary, to assist its efforts.
    (e) Report.--
            (1) In general.--The Task Force shall create a report 
        containing the following:
                    (A) The impact of truck leasing agreements on the 
                take-home pay of truck drivers.
                    (B) Whether the truck leasing agreements comply 
                with applicable local, State, and Federal law.
                    (C) Whether the Task Force determines that 
                legislation is necessary to protect the ability of 
                truck drivers to earn a living wage and, if so, 
                recommendations on such legislation.
                    (D) Whether the Task Force determines that changes 
                in regulations are necessary to protect the ability of 
                truck drivers to earn a living wage and, if so, 
                recommendations to the Secretary of Transportation and 
                the Secretary of Labor on such changes.
            (2) Submission.--Not later than 1 year after the date on 
        which the Task Force is established pursuant to subsection (a), 
        the report created pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted 
        to--
                    (A) the House Transportation and Infrastructure 
                Committee;
                    (B) the House Education and the Workforce 
                Committee;
                    (C) the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                Transportation; and
                    (D) the Senate Committee on Health, Education, 
                Labor, and Pensions.
    (f) Termination.--Not later than 1 month after the date of 
submission of the report pursuant to subsection (e), the Task Force 
shall terminate.