CARB’s New Interpretation of a California-Based Broker Puts 3PLs in Bad Spot

Following the recent article about the California Air Resources Board (CARB) fining two 3PLs, Marten Logistics for $100,000 and Roadrunner Transportation Systems for $52,250, for violating a record keeping violation associated with CARB’s Truck and Bus Rules, TIA staff spoke with CARB staff about a statement made by a CARB staffer regarding CA-based brokers.

Specifically, the CARB official had stated that:

Brokers are California-based when they broker loads in California, regardless of where the broker is physically located.

The truck and bus regulation does include language on California-based brokers, which is defined as:

California Based Broker, means a person, with operations based in California, who, for compensation, arranges or offers to arrange the transportation of property by an authorized motor carrier. A motor carrier, or person who is an employee or bona fide agent of a carrier, is not a broker when it arranges or offers to arrange the transportation of shipments which it is authorized to transport and which it has accepted and legally bound itself to transport.

In the recent conversation TIA staff had with the CARB staff member, CARB indicated that this has always been the case. In TIA’s opinion this is completely incorrect and misguided. TIA has been involved with all of CARBs regulations for more than10 years and this is the first time that this definition has been misconstrued to include a non-California based broker. Based on TIA’s discussions with CARB over the past years, the California-based broker definition could include someone with a remote office or an agent in the state of California, but never intended to cover “trucks being dispatched into California.” Recently, CARB has changed their interpretation to say that “operations” includes arranging trucks on California highways.

TIA staff have always been aware of one regulation, the Transportation Refrigeration Unit (TRU) Airborne Toxic Control Measure (ATCM), that includes 3PLs/brokers nationwide. The definition of a broker in that regulation perfectly demonstrates the difference between the two regulations and the “role” of the broker.

Freight brokers and freight forwarders: Section 2477.8 applies to freight brokers and freight forwarders (as defined in section 2477.4) that arrange, hire, tender contracts for, or dispatch the transport of perishable goods on California highways or railways in trucks, trailers, shipping containers, or railcars that are equipped with TRUs or TRU gen sets.

TIA staff will continue to work with CARB to put pressure on them to revert to the original intended definition of a California-based broker while working with Congress and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address these concerns.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact Chris Burroughs at burroughs@tianet.org or      703-299-5705.