Press Release

Washington, DC — The following is a statement from American Association for Justice CEO Linda Lipsen on the announcement from the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) granting petitions to preempt the state of California’s meal and rest break rules:

“There’s a reason why FMCSA made this announcement on Friday December 21st at 4:30 p.m. – it knows that this decision is a giveaway to the trucking industry at the expense of driver safety. The trucking industry has failed in numerous legislative attempts to fix the law, and the Supreme Court has declined to industry’s requests to review California’s law. Industry has now asked FMCSA to fix the law of one state. FMCSA’s misguided approach of preempting the law of one state at the behest of industry is not justified, and leaves the agency open to legal challenges. And of course, there is no evidence that California’s meal and rest break rules negatively impact safety.”