Trucking association CEO slams Utah's travel crackdown as 'unconstitutional'
- On Thursday, Utah governor Gary Herbert issued an order that all inbound travelers to the state of Utah will need to fill out a travel questionnaire.
- Travelers to Utah must declare if they have symptoms of the coronavirus, where they have traveled in the past two weeks, and other travel details.
- America's nearly two million truck drivers aren't likely to be fans.
- In an email to members of the assocation, Paul Enos, the CEO of the Nevada Trucking Association, rebuked the travel policy as "unconstitutional."
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Truck drivers are the reason retailers, online stores, gas stations, and just about every other store has remained stocked since the coronavirus has driven Americans into a panic-buying frenzy.
But, since the pandemic took over the world, truck drivers have found their daily lives upended - some for better, like the slashing of traffic in usually-hectic urban areas, and others for worse, like the shuttering of some state-run rest stops. There are nearly two million truck drivers in the US, according to federal statistics.
One more hurdle is getting added to the list: a new rule from Utah's governor and Department of Transportation that requires visitors to fill out a travelers' form.
Drivers will receive the form on their phones in an Amber Alert-like message if they enter Utah from one of nine geo-fenced entry points on the highways, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. Those who arrive in Utah via airplane will also receive the form.
The travel declaration will require travelers to say where they have traveled in the past 14 days, if they've been tested for the coronavirus, if are experiencing certain symptoms, or if they have interacted with coronavirus-positive folks.
As trucking supply chains are pressured to get more goods into more stores, this checkpoint could be a stumbling point for truck drivers. Many travel nationwide, and aren't likely to be able to pull over to fill out the form every time they pass through Utah.
There's also fear that forms like what's established in Utah could become a nationwide trend, though the form has no penalty for those that don't fill it out.
Paul Enos, who is the CEO of the Nevada Trucking Association, made it clear in an email to members of the 88-year-old organization that orders like Utah's won't fly for trucking.
"If you think that this is unconstitutional, you are right," Enos wrote in an email to members of the Nevada Trucking Association last night.
He added, "This is an impediment to interstate commerce, which was one of the main reasons we jettisoned the Articles of Confederation and adopted our Constitution way back in 1789."
Enos added in the email that he's working with the American Trucking Associations and the state of Utah for more clarity on what the order means for truck drivers. There are nearly 2,000 coronavirus cases in Utah and 13 deaths, though the state is among the minority to not issue a stay-at-home order.
Do you work in the trucking industry? Email rpremack@businessinsider.com
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