Feds halt licensing of new bus companies

updated 8:29 p.m. ET Aug. 12, 2008

DALLAS - The federal government says it will temporarily stop granting licenses to new bus companies after a crash in Texas killed 17 people.

The head of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration told The Associated Press on Tuesday he wants all applications to be checked against a database of bus companies that were given out-of-service orders.

Iguala BusMex Inc., whose bus crashed near Sherman on Friday, was awaiting approval for a federal license. The company is run by a man who also operates Angel Tours Inc., which was forced to take its vehicles out of interstate service June 23 after an unsatisfactory review by federal regulators.

Agency head John H. Hill said the suspension will not be "for a long period of time."

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