Newsletter
Check Call on Congress
Broker protections and cargo-theft bills face a January 3 deadline.
Nebojsa Lindic, Paul Jaroslawski · November 11, 2026 · 7 min read
Happy Hump Day. Every freight bill Congress doesn’t pass by noon on Jan. 3 dies, including the one that would give brokers a federal standard for picking carriers.
Plus:
More Loads, Fewer Trucks
Uber Freight Cuts 80 Jobs, Keeps Hiring
Forward Air Claws Back
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🍳 WHAT’S COOKIN’ IN FREIGHT
📊 More Loads, Fewer Trucks. Truckstop/FTR recorded a 7% increase in load postings for the week ending November 6, while truck postings fell 8.5%, their largest decline in nearly six months. The Market Demand Index, measuring loads relative to trucks, reached its highest level since early July. Refrigerated load postings jumped 18.4% from the prior week, and reefer rates rose just over 7 cents per mile. Flatbed rates fell 5.7 cents despite a 6.2% increase in loads. Across equipment types, broker-posted spot rates declined 1.8 cents but remained almost 41% above a year earlier. Excluding estimated fuel surcharges, rates were up close to 35% year over year.
🏢 Uber Freight Cuts 80 Jobs, Keeps Hiring. Uber Freight is eliminating approximately 80 positions, about 1.6%–1.7% of its workforce, while recruiting for 290 openings. The company hired 55 employees over the past 30 days, with much of its hiring focused on managed transportation. Uber Freight says deal volume in that business is 2.5 times its year-earlier level. The restructuring removes management layers, duplicate responsibilities, and shifts functions between teams. Employees in Frisco, Texas, will move to an Uber office in Dallas in early 2027. Its Tinley Park, Illinois, office has closed, with employees moving to Chicago. Affected workers are receiving severance and transition assistance.
🚛 Forward Air Claws Back. Forward Air reported third-quarter revenue of $674 million, up 7% year over year and a second consecutive quarterly record. Operating income nearly tripled to $44 million from $15 million, while net income attributable to Forward Air reached $11.4 million, compared with a $16.3 million loss a year earlier. Earlier this year, after more than a year of talks, Forward failed to find a buyer for the entire company and turned to selling divisions to reduce debt. Now, with its intermodal business improving, Forward has paused that unit’s planned sale. CFO Jamie Pierson said a sale remains possible if offers reflect its fair value.
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Freight’s Unfinished Bills Face a January Reset
At noon on January 3, unfinished bills from this Congress die. Democrats’ midterm takeover of both chambers puts new committee leaders in charge of the freight agenda.
Lawmakers who want to revive those bills must reintroduce them under new numbers. Congress’s first hurdle is keeping the federal government funded beyond December 11, when the current temporary spending law expires.
In his FreightWaves analysis, Rob Carpenter urges lawmakers to include restrictions on foreign-based brokers and offshore dispatch services, along with changes to CDL-school self-certification rules, in the funding bill.
Still Stuck After Montgomery
On May 14, the Supreme Court ruled that federal law does not block crash-related lawsuits accusing freight brokers of choosing unsafe carriers.
The bill offering a national standard for that choice, H.R. 5337, has had no legislative action since its September 12, 2025 referral to a House subcommittee.
H.R. 5337 would treat a broker as “reasonable and prudent” in selecting a carrier after verifying registration, legally required insurance, and FMCSA confirmation that the carrier meets operating safety requirements. The checks would have to occur within 45 days before shipment, no later than the shipment date.
Cargo-Theft Bill Stalls in Senate
The House passed the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, H.R. 2853, 348–60 on May 12. The Senate referred it to Judiciary on May 13, where it remains.
The bill would create a Homeland Security coordination center to share intelligence, assist local investigations, and work with transportation companies on organized theft.
It would also expand money-laundering and criminal-forfeiture provisions covering theft from interstate shipments.
Dalilah’s Law Awaits a House Vote
Dalilah’s Law advanced out of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee but still awaits a vote by the full House.
If it becomes law, it would tighten CDL eligibility, English-proficiency and driver-training requirements while restricting certain foreign-based dispatch services and freight brokers.
Democrats have challenged key provisions: Rep. Rick Larsen called the English-proficiency section redundant, while others objected that the non-domiciled CDL restrictions could prevent DACA recipients from qualifying to drive commercial trucks.
What Could Still Move
Truckload Carriers Association President Jim Mullen expects a highway-funding extension into June. He says next year’s broader bill could revive a proposal to raise the current $750,000 liability minimum for most heavy trucks hauling nonhazardous freight.
Of 40 trucking-specific bills Carpenter tracks, only Dalilah’s Law and the BUILD America 250 Act have cleared committee, leaving 38 still stuck. Bills unfinished on January 3 expire and must be introduced again.
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🌎 AROUND THE FREIGHT WEB
🚨 Stretching the Rules. Tennessee troopers stopped a commercial vehicle measuring 95 feet, 7 inches, without an oversize permit. Inspectors also found debris spilling onto the road, a broken axle-position bolt, deflated trailer airbags, and inoperable trailer brake lights.
⚖️ RICO Case Eyes 2028. Jury selection in the carriers’ racketeering lawsuit against C.H. Robinson and TQL is proposed for April 3, 2028. The schedule still needs court approval, while TQL’s request to dismiss the case over venue remains a nearer hurdle.
🤝 China Truce Extended. The U.S. and China extended their trade truce through January 10, 2027, keeping reduced tariffs and the pause on China-linked vessel fees in place.
🚛 Payment Dispute, Theft Charge. Texas deputies recovered 43,000 pounds of fiber-optic cable after a driver allegedly refused to return a canceled shipment over payment. The driver faces a theft charge.
🚢 Port Strike on Hold. About 250 LA/Long Beach security watchmen extended their contract through November 20, delaying a potential strike that would affect 85% of Long Beach cargo and one-third of Los Angeles cargo.
💻 Revenova Launches Launchpad. Revenova’s new TMS is built for small and midsize truckload brokerages, combining quoting, booking, tracking, and invoicing. It also offers integrations for carrier vetting, load boards, electronic payments, and accounting.
🎣 THE FREIGHT CAVIAR CORNER
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😂 FREIGHT HUMOR
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🎧 THE FREIGHT CAVIAR PODCAST
Carlos M. Llanes Jr., Founder & CEO at Spartan Carrier Group, joined Paul-Bernard Jaroslawski and Lev Krasnopolskiy on the FreightCaviar Podcast to discuss how he grew the company to roughly 200 people and 60 trucks in just six months without VC funding, how Spartan became one of only 12 carriers serving Toyota in North America, and his take on the driver shortage.
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