Three Current and Potential Regulatory Changes for Commercial Motor Carriers

Certificate of Violations 

Continuous Motor Vehicle Report (MVR) monitoring is an important administrative tool to ensure safety on the roadway. Historically, the FMCSA has required an annual MVR and a driver Certificate of Violations (COV). Effective May 9, 2022, the FMCSA has removed the COV requirement for motor carriers and their drivers. Carriers must continue to pull an annual MVR and certify that no record exist that would prevent a driver from operating a Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV). COV’s that were collected in the three years prior to May 9th must still be retained. 

Road Test Certificates 

The FMCSA recently revised its road test certificate format to protect personal identifiable information of drivers. Although road tests are still required to verify new drivers can safely operate the motor vehicle they will be required to operate, the testing certificate will no longer need the driver’s license number, license state, or social security number. This rule went into effect on March 22, 2022. 

Road test certificates are required for new commercial drivers. A Commercial Driver’s License may be accepted in lieu of a road test unless the vehicle requires hauling of doubles/triples or a tank vehicle endorsement. Drivers are required to test in the type of vehicle they will operate. 

Speed Limiter Devices 

The comment period recently closed on the FMCSA’s proposed speed limiter rule. This proposed rule is a flow up on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) and FMCSA’s 2016 proposed rulemaking for the same focus area. If implemented, this rule could impact all motor carriers operating commercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 26,001 pounds or more. What could this mean for your operations? 

The proposal intends to introduce requirements for multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses to be equipped with speed limiting devices. While the specific limiting speed has not yet been determined, possible limits of 60, 65, or 68 mph are on the table. Many motor carriers already govern their trucks to speeds in this range, but this is not a mandatory rule. If it becomes mandatory, many motor carriers are going to be tasked with ensuring compliance with the new rulemaking by implementing speed-limiting devices.  

To learn more about the proposed speed limit rule, visit the American Trucking Associations (ATA) website. 

For more on fleet safety, register for our webinar, Driving Safety and DOT Compliance Through Implementing a Safety Management System, where our leading health and safety consultants will describe the components of an SMS, how to implement them in a manner that works for your organization, the benefits of implementation, and why implementing an SMS is an important step in improving fleet safety and compliance. 

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