CBO director: We're going to pay for the great deal of st…

CNBC's Ylan Mui reports on comments from the CBO director about the impact of tax reform and Federal Reserve rate hikes on the federal budget.

Congress Was Hoping to Ride the Tax Cuts to the Election, but Trump May Have Other Plans

Now that Congress' spring break is over, Republican lawmakers back in Washington are facing pressure from the White House to tackle some big items on President Trump's agenda, even as many of them would prefer to devote their attention over the coming months to the elections this fall. This year “was supposed to be a lay-up for Congressional Republicans,” writes Chris Krueger of the Cowen Washington Research group. The plan, Krueger explains, was to “just run out the clock and hope the 2017 laundry list of tax cuts, judges, Gorsuch, deregulation, and defense spending was enough to hold the House and Senate.

Police find body of Tennessee man who confessed to killings on Facebook

The corpse was located in the unincorporated community of Vossburg, about 100 miles southeast of Jackson, said Jasper County Sheriff Randy Johnson in a statement on Facebook. The dead man was believed to be Casey Lawhorn who on Sunday said in a Facebook post that he had killed his mother and his friend in his home in East Ridge, Tennessee, outside Chattanooga, according to East Ridge Assistant Police Chief Stan Allen on Monday. Allen would not confirm details of the Facebook post but said police found Lawhorn's 44-year-old mother and a 22-year-old friend inside the home.

Operation Safe Driver Week Set to Begin July 15

This year's Operation Safe Driver Week has been set for July 15-21. Photo: CVSA

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance's Operation Safe Driver Week has been set for the week of July 15-21, 2018, with law enforcement around the country joining in on the effort to spot unsafe driving behaviors by commercial vehicle drivers and passenger vehicles.

The CVSA continues to target unsafe driving behavior because it remains the leading cause of highway crashes according to a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration study. That study cited driver behavior as the critical reason behind 88% of large truck crashes and 93% of all passenger vehicle crashes.

The Operation Safe Driver Program was created to help reduce the number of crashes, deaths, and injuries involving commercial vehicles due to unsafe driving behaviors. During the week, there will be increased commercial vehicle and passenger vehicle traffic enforcement. Enforcement personnel will be targeting unsafe driving behaviors such as speeding, distracted driving, texting, failure to us a seatbelt, following too closely, improper lane change and failure to obey traffic control devices.

Last year's Operation Safe Driver Week saw nearly 39,000 citations and warnings handed out to commercial vehicle drivers. State and local moving violations made up the bulk of warnings and citations followed by speeding, failing to use a seat belt, failing to obey traffic control devices and, using a cell phone. Only 18 commercial drivers were cited for operating while ill or fatigued, while a total of 86 were given warnings.

Operation Safe Driver Week is sponsored by CVSA, in partnership with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and with support from industry and transportation safety organizations, and aims to help improve the behavior of all drivers operating in an unsafe manner – either in or around CMVs – through educational and traffic enforcement strategies to address ...Read the rest of this story

Go Power! Offers Pallet Jack and Liftgate Solar Charging Solution

Go Power! has paired its solar charging system with a new component for work trucks. The dual-charging system was engineered specifically for charging liftgate and pallet jack batteries.

An Auto Switching Power Control unit allows the DCS to automatically switch from charging pallet jacks to liftgates, depending on what is plugged into the unit. Topping off liftgate and pallet jack batteries with solar power extends the life of the batteries from months to years, according to Go Power! The DCS eliminates the need for idling while operating a liftgate, saving up to $25-40 per day in fuel costs.

Minimal modifications are required to the truck or trailer and only basic tools are needed to secure the solar panels and wire them into the truck's electrical system.

The kid includes Go Power's low-profile solar panels, which are 1/8-inches thick and lighter weight than traditional panels. The modular panel design allows for easy expansion if required for service routes with limited daylight locations. Panels are covered by a standard five-year warranty.

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SoCalGas Helps Calif. Fleets Acquire Natural Gas Trucks

Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) announced efforts to help California fleets get more drivers behind the wheel of near-zero emissions heavy-duty natural gas trucks. The effort was part of a $21 million Prop 1B incentive pool administered by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD).

The Prop 1B Program is intended to reduce diesel air pollution from goods movement operations and achieve the earliest possible health risk reduction in nearby communities. Fleet owners seeking to replace diesel trucks may be eligible for up to $100,000 towards the purchase of a new natural gas truck.

SoCalGas representatives provided assistance on 400 Prop 1B applications throughout its service territory. If all these applications are accepted and receive funding, SoCalGas customers will replace at least 400 diesel trucks with near-zero natural gas trucks. Replacing 400 diesel trucks with near-zero natural gas trucks is the equivalent of taking more than 22,000 passenger cars off the road.

For the SCAQMD solicitation, SoCalGas customers submitted more than 150 applications, with many of these requests coming from fleets smaller than 10 trucks. These dependable, clean trucks cut smog-forming emissions by more than 90% compared to the cleanest heavy-duty diesel trucks on the road today. When these near-zero natural gas trucks are fueled by renewable natural gas, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are reduced by 80 percent. Already, 60% of natural gas fleets in California are fueled with renewable natural gas and this number is expected to climb to about 90% by the end of this year.

The SCAQMD solicitation is one of many incentive programs SoCalGas customers used in 2017. More than 225 applications were submitted to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and San Diego Air Pollution Control District from SoCalGas customers. This demand far exceeded the $14 million in available incentive funding.

The transportation sector is ...Read the rest of this story

Next Healthy Fleet Challenge starts May 1