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AS CHAIRMAN, I AM DOING ALL IN MY POWER TO MAKE THE COMMISSION A SHOWCASE

OF HOW A GOVERNMENTAL AGENCY CAN ACHIEVE REGULATORY REFORM WITHOUT DISLOCATING

THE INDUSTRIES IT HAS REGULATED FOR SO MANY YEARS.

BUT INSPIRATION ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH, FOR SURELY YOU WILL AGREE THAT THE

CHANCES OF GAINING AN OBJECTIVE ARE USUALLY DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL TO THE DEGREE

OF COMMITMENT DEVOTED TO ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE PROJECT. CONSEQUENTLY, WE AT

THE I.C.C. HAVE MADE A FIRM COMMITMENT TO THE ACHIEVEMENT OF REGULATORY REFORM

WITH FAIRNESS TO ALL CONCERNED.

TO ME, FAIRNESS DEMANDS THAT WE DISCHARGE OUR REGULATORY RESPONSIBILITIES

BY APPLYING THE LAW IN A MANNER CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT OF CONGRESS, AND WITHOUT ADMINISTRATIVE AMENDMENTS THAT IGNORE, SUBVERT, OR TWIST OUR

LEGISLATIVE MANDATES. THE POSTURE WE HAVE TAKEN IS THAT WHEN SOME FURTHER

CHANGE IS WARRANTED IN THE PRESCRIPTION GIVEN US FOR REGULATORY REFORM, WE'LL

GO TO CONGRESS AND REQUEST A CHANGE.

AND FINALLY, THERE'S ONE MORE IMPORTANT INGREDIENT OF OUR CURRENT EFFORTS

THAT CANNOT GO UNMENTIONED, AND THAT'S THE ELEMENT OF COOPERATION. AS ALL OF

YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT CHALLENGES WE FACE AT THE COMMISSION IS

RESOLVING DISPUTES BETWEEN THE CONFLICTING AGENDAS OF MANY INTEREST GROUPS. IT

IS UNFORTUNATE BUT TRUE THAT COOPERATION IS DISCUSSED MORE THAN IT IS

PRACTICED.

NEVERTHELESS, IN MY VIEW, COOPERATION IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL TO THE

SUCCESSFUL ACCOMPLISHMENT OF OUR ENDEAVORS AT THE I.C.C., BECAUSE THE

ACHIEVEMENT OF OUR DEREGULATORY GOALS IS LARGELY DEPENDENT UPON DEVELOPING A

NEW SPIRIT OF COOPERATION BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRY, AND BETWEEN THE

I.C.C AND THOSE INDUSTRIES WHICH ARE SUBJECT TO OUR JURISDICTION.

IN REFLECTING THE ADMINISTRATION'S APPROACH, WE MUST BRING TO AN END THE

ADVERSARY RELATIONSHIPS THAT HAVE EXISTED FOR SO LONG BETWEEN THE PUBLIC AND

PRIVATE SECTORS. THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS, WE SIMPLY CAN'T AFFORD CONTINUING

ANIMOSITY IF WE HAVE ANY HOPE OF SUCCESSFULLY DEALING WITH THE CHALLENGES NOW

CONFRONTING OUR SURFACE TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRIES, MANY OF WHICH STEM FROM THE

SUBSTITUTION OF COMPETITION FOR REGULATION.

DON'T GET ME WRONG. INCREASED COMPETITION IS ALSO ONE OF OUR MOST

IMPORTANT OBJECTIVES. BUT A CONTINUING DIALOGUE BETWEEN COMPETING MODES IS

ESSENTIAL FOR THE SOLUTION OF COMMON PROBLEMS.

NOW LET ME SUGGEST THAT AS A HELP IN REMEMBERING THE THREE COMMON

ELEMENTS WE'VE JUST DISCUSSED, TRY KEEPING IN MIND THE COMMISSION'S THREE

INITIALS, WITH THE RESULT THAT IF YOU LET THE "I" STAND FOR INSPIRATION, THE

FIRST "C" FOR COMMITMENT AND THE SECOND "C" FOR COOPERATION, YOU'LL HAVE THE

THREE WORDS WHICH REPRESENT THE CORNERSTONE OF OUR EFFORTS TO ENSURE A BETTER

SURFACE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IN THE YEARS AHEAD.

TODAY, MY REMARKS WILL FOCUS UPON COOPERATION. IN EXCHANGING THE MAILED

FIST OF CONFRONTATION FOR THE EXTENDED HAND OF COOPERATION, WE ARE

ACKNOWLEDGING THE REALITY OF THE 1980'S. THAT REALITY TELLS US THAT BECAUSE

THERE ARE LIMITS TO WHAT GOVERNMENT CAN ACCOMPLISH, TRADITIONAL RELATIONSHIPS

BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR ARE UNDERGOING SUBSTANTIAL CHANGE.

THE HOUSEHOLD GOODS ACT RECOGNIZED THE NEW REALITY BY OPENING UP

OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE HOUSEHOLD GOODS TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY. OBSERVERS OF

THE INDUSTRY ARE WATCHING CLOSELY TO GAUGE THE RESPONSE OF THE MOVING COMPANIES

TO THESE OPPORTUNITIES.

ALTHOUGH IT IS REALLY TOO SOON AFTER IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HOUSEHOLD

GOODS ACT TO DRAW ANY LASTING CONCLUSIONS, IT IS POSSIBLE TO MAKE SOME EARLY

ASSESSMENTS. FOR EXAMPLE, ALTHOUGH ENTRY BARRIERS HAVE BEEN SUBSTANTIALLY

EASED, WE HAVE NOT SEEN A GREAT INFLUX OF NEW CARRIERS - A RESULT WHICH WAS

ENTIRELY PREDICTABLE.

THE NATURE OF THE HOUSEHOLD GOODS TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY, THE NEED FOR

SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT AND TRAINED LABOR, AND THE CAPITAL INVESTMENT REQUIRED TO

BEGIN A NEW OPERATION - ALL THESE FACTORS COMBINE TO EFFECTIVELY MINIMIZE THE

LIKELIHOOD THAT ANY MAJOR RESTRUCTURING OF THE INDUSTRY WILL TAKE PLACE IN THE

FORSEEABLE FUTURE.

AT THE PRESENT TIME, WE ARE ALSO WITNESSING WHAT APPEARS TO BE THE

DEVELOPMENT OF A SIGNIFICANT TREND IN THE USE OF CONTRACTS BY HOUSEHOLD GOODS

MOVING COMPANIES. AS A MARKETING TACTIC, THERE ARE SOME OBVIOUS ADVANTAGES TO

CONTRACT CARRIAGE, PARTICULARLY INSOFAR AS PRICING STRATEGIES ARE CONCERNED.

CONSEQUENTLY, IT SEEMS ALTOGETHER LIKELY THAT THE TREND TOWARD CONTRACTING WILL

BECOME A PERMANENT PRACTICE.

AND SPEAKING OF PRICING PRACTICES, ANOTHER OF THE INDUSTRY'S RESPONSES TO

THE HOUSEHOLD GOODS ACT CAN BE SEEN IN THE VARIETY OF PRICE AND SERVICE OPTIONS

WHICH HAVE BEEN INTRODUCED.

DISCOUNTS ARE BEING OFFERED IN A NUMBER OF IMAGINATIVE WAYS. VOLUME

DISCOUNTS ARE OBTAINABLE BASED ON THE NUMBER OF SHIPMENTS TRANSPORTED, THE

AGGREGATE WEIGHT OF SHIPMENTS, AND THE CUMULATIVE CHARGES FOR SHIPMENTS. MORE

THAN ONE DISCOUNT MAY APPLY TO THE SAME SHIPMENT. WE HAVE EVEN SEEN TARIFFS

WHICH PROVIDE DISCOUNTS BASED ON THE AGE OF THE SHIPPER.

COMBINING GUARANTEED SERVICE DATES, WITH AN AGREED UPON AMOUNT OF

COMPENSATION TO THE SHIPPER IF THE DATES ARE NOT MET, IS ANOTHER SERVICE OPTION

WHICH IS BEING USED WITH SOME FREQUENCY. WHILE A FEW WARNING SIGNALS HAVE BEEN

SOUNDED BY SOME CONSUMERS ABOUT THE POSSIBLE USE OF THIS OPTION AS AN ATTEMPT

TO EFFECTIVELY LIMIT A CARRIER'S LIABILITY, IN GENERAL, PROVIDING A SHIPPER

WITH ASSURANCE OF MONETARY COMPENSATION FOR THE INCONVENIENCE AND EXPENSE OF

DELAYS, SEEMS TO BE AN APPROPRIATE MARKETING TOOL.

THERE ARE OTHER ASPECTS OF THE RAPID GROWTH OF PRICE/SERVICE OPTIONS

WHICH DEFY THOUGHTFUL ANALYSIS AT THE MOMENT. FOR EXAMPLE, WE ARE CURRENTLY

TAKING A "WAIT AND SEE" ATTITUDE TOWARD THE VARIOUS DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROGRAMS

WHICH USE ARBITRATION TO SETTLE DIFFERENCES, AS WELL AS THE FULL-VALUE

LIABILITY PROTECTION OPTIONS COMING INTO PROMINENCE. IT WILL TAKE THE

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