The U.S. Senate voted late Tuesday to block funding for a test program to allow Mexican long-haul trucks to operate in the United States under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

In a later development, the Senate this morning passed the Transportation Funding bill that
contained the Byron Dorgan amendment to stop funding for the Mexican truck program passed last night. The vote this morning was 88-7.
Expressing his disappointment in Tuesday evening's vote, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator John H. Hill said, "Tonight's decision by the Senate is a sad victory for the politics of fear and protectionism and a disappointing defeat for U.S. consumers and U.S. truck drivers.
"This decision robs consumers of significant new savings, deprives drivers of new opportunities to compete in Mexico and squanders millions in taxpayer dollars Congress has spent to put in place a sophisticated safety network for border crossings."
Meanwhile, reaction from opponents of the program was swift. Both the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) and the Teamsters union were jubilant in their praise of the 74-24 vote by the Senate.
Todd Spencer, executive vice president of OOIDA thanked the Senate for passing the amendment to cut off the funding for the U.S. Department of Transportation's Cross-Border Trucking Pilot Program.
"Congress has said enough is enough," Spencer said in a press release. "They're tired of the administration's efforts to force the pilot program on the American people. Our nation's safety and security should never be put at risk."
Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa also praised the Senate for its vote, saying, "The American people have spoken, and Congress has spoken," Hoffa said. "Now it's time for the Bush administration to listen. We don't want to share our highways with dangerous trucks from Mexico."
Late Tuesday, Sen. Byron Dorgan, (D-N.D.) and Sen. Arlen Specter, (R-Pa.) offered the amendment to the Senate's FY 2008 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill. It would cut off funds for implementing the cross-border pilot program.
The Dorgan-Specter amendment stipulates, "None of the funds made available under this act may be used to establish a cross-border motor carrier demonstration program to allow Mexico domiciled motor carriers to operate beyond the commercial zones along the international border between the United States and Mexico."
In July, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously approved a similar amendment as part of deliberations on its version of the 2008 transportation appropriations legislation that also would remove funding for the cross-border pilot program.
The amendment passed by the Senate Tuesday night is contained in a funding bill for transportation projects in fiscal year 2008, which begins in October. The Senate is expected to give final approval to this measure before wrapping up its business for the week. If this bill receives final passage, it will have to be reconciled with an earlier, slightly different House bill. The resulting legislation will then face an up and down vote before heading to President Bush. The president has already promised a veto of the Senate measure because it exceeds his transportation funding request by more than $4 billion dollars.