(2) Independent studies have repeatedly docu-
mented 
the 
low 
pay 
and 
rampant 
worker 
misclassification in the port drayage and intermodal 
industries. 
(3) The Subcommittee on Highways and Tran-
sit 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 dis-
turbing employer abuses and called the work ar-
rangements 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 author-
ity to adjudicate these claims and have rejected com-
plaints that wage claims brought by truck drivers 
with the Labor Commissioner are preempted by the 
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act 
of 1994. 
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(7) The California Employment Development 
Department and the New Jersey Department of 
Labor have awarded at least 50 port drivers unem-
ployment and disability benefits. 
(8) Regions 21 and 5 of the National Labor 
Relations Board have issued several complaints 
against port trucking companies for allegedly com-
mitting unfair labor practices after investigations de-
termined 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 pro-
test 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 bene-
ficial cargo owners and third-party logistics pro-
viders, contribute to negative working conditions for 
port truck drivers. 
(11) Government officials have an opportunity 
and a responsibility to improve the working condi-
tions of port truck drivers. 
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SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that truck drivers, includ-
ing 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 rent-
al arrangements; 
(6) not be misclassified as independent contrac-
tors 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 Trans-
portation, 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 mem-
bers of the Task Force from the following groups: 
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(1) Labor organizations. 
(2) The motor carrier industry. 
(3) Consumer protection groups. 
(4) Safety groups. 
(5) Members of the legal profession who spe-
cialize 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 vis-
its 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 agree-
ments 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 abil-
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ity 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 liv-
ing 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 pur-
suant to subsection (a), the report created pursuant 
to paragraph (1) shall be submitted to— 
(A) the House Transportation and Infra-
structure Committee; 
(B) the House Education and the Work-
force 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. 
Æ 
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