交通部发布指引：各州可用联邦紧急救援资金抵消燃油运输涨价 12州已联名请愿
华盛顿——美国交通部（Department of Transportation，DOT）10月22日发布指引，明确各州可以使用联邦紧急救援资金，抵消燃油价格上涨给燃油运输车队带来的成本增加。
交通部介绍，依据《美国法典》第23篇第125条的紧急救援计划，目前有逾4亿美元资金可供各州动用。按交通部估算，动用这笔资金平均可为每一车次油罐车运输节省约2,600美元。指引发布前，已有12个州联名致信交通部请求联邦层面介入，这12个州是阿拉斯加州、亚利桑那州、爱达荷州、印第安纳州、堪萨斯州、蒙大拿州、北卡罗来纳州、俄亥俄州、俄克拉荷马州、德克萨斯州、西弗吉尼亚州与威斯康星州。
联邦汽车运输安全管理局（FMCSA）政策副局长 Chelsea Partington 表示，交通部此举是为各州与运输业者提供明确的操作依据，让紧急救援资金能依法用于缓解燃油运输环节的成本压力，保障燃油供应链稳定。
业界组织对指引表示欢迎。货主经营者独立司机协会（OOIDA）、美国公共交通协会（APTA）与全国油罐车承运人协会（NTTC）均公开表态支持，认为在油价高企时期，这一安排有助于稳定燃油配送与运输企业的运营成本。
交通部表示，各州交通部门可按紧急救援计划的既有程序申请与动用资金，具体额度与用途须符合联邦法规要求。
DOT Guidance Lets States Use Federal Emergency Relief Funds to Offset Fuel Hauling Costs: 12 States Petitioned
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) issued guidance on October 22 clarifying that states may use federal Emergency Relief funds to offset fuel cost increases borne by fuel hauling fleets.
According to DOT, more than $400 million is available under the Emergency Relief program authorized by 23 U.S.C. 125. The department estimated that using the funds could save an average of about $2,600 per tanker load. Before the guidance was issued, 12 states had jointly petitioned DOT for federal action: Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Montana, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Chelsea Partington, Associate Administrator for Policy at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), said the guidance gives states and carriers a clear basis to lawfully apply Emergency Relief funds to ease cost pressure in fuel transportation and keep the fuel supply chain stable.
Industry groups welcomed the move. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and the National Tank Truck Carriers (NTTC) all voiced support, saying the arrangement would help stabilize fuel delivery and carriers' operating costs while fuel prices remain high.
DOT said state transportation departments may apply for and use the funds through the Emergency Relief program's existing procedures, with amounts and uses subject to federal requirements.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：位于华盛顿的美国交通部总部大楼（Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 3.0）
