Predatory Truck Leasing Prevention Act of 2025

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5423 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5423

To amend title 49, United States Code, to prohibit the use of predatory 
   commercial motor vehicle lease-purchase programs by certain motor 
                   carriers, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 17, 2025

 Ms. Brownley introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

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                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to prohibit the use of predatory 
   commercial motor vehicle lease-purchase programs by certain motor 
                   carriers, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Predatory Truck Leasing Prevention 
Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON PREDATORY COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE LEASE-
              PURCHASE AGREEMENT PROGRAMS.

    Section 14102 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(c) Prohibition on Predatory Commercial Motor Vehicle Lease-
Purchase Agreement Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall promulgate 
        regulations to prohibit the use of predatory commercial motor 
        vehicle lease-purchase programs by motor carriers providing 
        transportation subject to jurisdiction under subchapter I of 
        chapter 135.
            ``(2) Relief provision.--In promulgating regulations 
        pursuant to paragraph (1), the Secretary shall establish a 
        process by which drivers can be granted relief from the terms 
        of a lease-purchase agreement if--
                    ``(A) the Secretary finds that the terms of the 
                lease-purchase agreement violated regulations issued 
                pursuant to paragraph (1); and
                    ``(B) the lease-purchase agreement was entered into 
                after the effective date of the regulations issued 
                pursuant to paragraph (1).
            ``(3) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    ``(A) Predatory commercial motor vehicle lease-
                purchase agreement program.--The term `predatory 
                commercial motor vehicle lease-purchase agreement 
                program' means the framework of motor carrier-driver 
                relationship, including the lease-purchase agreement, 
                the contract for the driver's work for the motor 
                carrier, and the motor carrier's practices in 
                implementing the contracts that are not provided in the 
                contract, including the motor carrier's recruitment 
                practices, operational practices, and tax and finance 
                practices, whereby the motor carrier controls the work, 
                compensation, and debts of the driver, and the driver 
                accrues no equity or is forced to give up equity 
                accrued in the contracted truck.
                    ``(B) Lease purchase agreement.--The term `lease-
                purchase agreement' means a financial contract by which 
                a driver leases a commercial motor vehicle from a motor 
                carrier (or a firm affiliated with such motor carrier) 
                to haul freight while driving for the same motor 
                carrier under a separate contract.''.
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