• All employers, employees, and drivers who operate CMVs must comply with the FMCSRs.
• The regulations are enforced by a combination of state, local, and federal agencies.

Compliance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) is required of all employers, employees, and drivers operating commercial motor vehicles (CMVs). A “commercial motor vehicle” is any self-propelled or towed motor vehicle used on a highway in interstate commerce to transport passengers or property when the vehicle:

• Has a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR), gross combination weight rating (GCWR), gross vehicle weight (GVW), or gross combination weight (GCW) of 10,001 pounds or more, whichever is greater; or
• Is designed or used to transport 9 or more passengers (including the driver) for compensation, or 16 or more passengers (including the driver) not for compensation; or
• Is used to transport hazardous materials in a quantity requiring placarding.

Intrastate operations

Carriers and drivers engaged in intrastate-only commerce (within the borders of a state) are not generally subject to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA’s) jurisdiction or the monitoring and enforcement programs that apply to interstate operations (except in the case of drivers transporting placarded hazardous materials). Instead, these carriers and drivers are subject to state and local CMV laws and regulations, which are generally compatible with — but not always identical to — the FMCSRs. Some states, for example, exempt CMVs that weigh less than 26,001 pounds.

Who can enforce the FMCSRs?

To ensure that federal CMV safety regulations are enforced, the FMCSA relies on state and local transportation agencies, in addition to its own safety investigators stationed at FMCSA Field Offices in each state. Although any officer of the law can stop a truck or bus on the roadside and issue a citation, only certified officers and investigators can conduct official audits or investigations or conduct roadside inspections that result in compliance data being uploaded to FMCSA. Information on officer certification requirements can be found in Part 385, Subpart C.

The FMCSA helps pay for state and local CMV enforcement programs through the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP). To qualify for MCSAP funds, states must have and enforce CMV safety laws that are equivalent to and compatible with the FMCSRs. See:

• Part 350 for more information about MCSAP standards.
• Part 355 for more information about the standards for ensuring that state laws are “compatible” with the FMCSRs.

• The FMCSA conducts CRs to assess carriers’ safety management controls.

A compliance review is an in-depth examination of a motor carrier’s operations to determine whether the carrier meets the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA’s) safety fitness standard as described in 385.5. Those that meet the standard are granted a “satisfactory” safety rating. Safety ratings are only issued after a compliance review, not after other types of enforcement actions.

To meet the safety fitness standard, a motor carrier must demonstrate it has adequate “safety management controls” in place, which function effectively to ensure acceptable compliance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. Safety management controls are the systems, policies, programs, practices, and procedures used by a motor carrier to ensure compliance with applicable safety and hazardous materials regulations, which ensure the safe movement of products and passengers through the transportation system, and to reduce the risk of highway accidents and hazardous materials incidents resulting in fatalities, injuries, and property damage. (385.3) The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) do not generally specify which safety management controls a carrier must have in place for each compliance topic. Rather, the FMCSA leaves it up to each motor carrier to decide which controls are best to achieve the goal at hand.

See: Safety Management Cycle (below)

Compliance reviews are used:

1. To rate unrated motor carriers,
2. To conduct a follow-up investigation on motor carriers rated unsatisfactory or conditional as a result of a previous review,
3. To investigate legitimate (non-frivolous) complaints,
4. In response to a request by a motor carrier to reevaluate its safety rating, or
5. To assess motor carriers deemed to be high risk.

Motor carriers are usually given at least 48 hours advance notice before a compliance review, not including weekends or federal holidays. In that 48-hour time frame, the carrier is expected to produce all documentation requested by the FMCSA. (390.29) Records that need to be produced include:

• Proof of financial responsibility,
• Driver qualification files (including all required forms),
• Drug and alcohol testing records (if applicable),
• Records of duty status (logs) and supporting documents,
• Driver vehicle inspection reports and maintenance records,
• Hazardous materials records (if applicable), and
• An accident register and copies of all required accident reports.

Auditors will also review roadside inspection results and other data already accessible to the FMCSA.

The compliance review and safety rating process is governed under Part 385. Carriers that are not domiciled in North America but that intend to operate in the United States should refer to Part 385, Subparts H and I.

• Motor carriers can receive either a satisfactory, conditional, or unsatisfactory safety rating after a compliance review.

A safety rating is an evaluation assigned to an interstate motor carrier after a compliance review. The ratings are made public and can have wide-ranging effects on a carrier’s ability to conduct business.

The safety rating a motor carrier receives from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) affects everything from its ability to continue operation (i.e., it could result in an out-of-service order) to insurance rates to attracting customers and quality drivers to how it might fare in a lawsuit based on its “reputation.” Because so much hinges on a positive outcome following an investigation, it is important to have a clear understanding how the agency arrives at a rating.

The three possible ratings are:

• Satisfactory — The carrier has adequate safety management controls to meet the safety fitness standards in 385.5.
• Conditional — The carrier does not have adequate safety management controls in place, which could lead to serious safety violations.
• Unsatisfactory — The carrier does not have adequate safety management controls in place and has committed serious safety violations.

In general, carriers rated “unsatisfactory” are prohibited from operating commercial motor vehicles. These carriers are issued an out-of-service order that becomes final on the 61st day after the rating is assigned, although that may be extended by up to 60 days for carriers making an effort to comply. For carriers hauling hazmat or passengers, the out-of-service order becomes final on the 46th day after the carrier is rated.

• Compliance with acute and critical regulations affects the outcome of a compliance review.

In part, carriers are evaluated and safety ratings assigned based on compliance or noncompliance with a series of “acute” and “critical” regulations. Other factors include vehicle and driver out-of-service rates and accident history.

• Acute regulations are those where noncompliance is so severe that immediate corrective actions by the motor carrier are required. For example, a violation of 383.37(b) by allowing or requiring an employee to drive with more than one commercial driver’s license is an acute violation. Such a violation is usually discovered through examination of the driver’s qualification file, reflecting that the carrier had knowledge of the violation. If the motor carrier did not have such knowledge or could not reasonably be expected to have such knowledge, then a violation would not be cited.
• Critical regulations are those where noncompliance relates to management and/or operational controls, and violations indicate a breakdown in those controls. For example, the basic hours-of-service limits in 395.3 and 395.5 are critical regulations.

The list of acute and critical regulations can be found at the end of this explanation.

Points are assigned when the auditor finds noncompliance with acute regulations or patterns of noncompliance with critical regulations. A pattern is more than one violation; when several documents are reviewed for compliance with a particular regulation, a pattern is found when 10 percent of the documents show a violation.

• Compliance reviews are based on six factors.
• The points assessed against these factors will result in a safety rating of either satisfactory, conditional, or unsatisfactory.

The regulations are categorized into five “factors,” along with a sixth factor addressing accidents:

• Factor 1. General — Parts 387 and 390
• Factor 2. Driver — Parts 382, 383, and 391
• Factor 3. Operational — Parts 392 and 395
• Factor 4. Vehicle — Parts 393 and 396
• Factor 5. Hazmat — Parts 397, 171, 177, and 180
• Factor 6. Accident — Recordable accident rate

Each time the auditor finds a violation of an acute regulation or a pattern of noncompliance with a critical regulation, one point will be assessed against the appropriate factor. However, each pattern of noncompliance with a critical hours-of-service regulation under Part 395 will be assessed two points. These points then translate into a rating for each factor, as follows:

• Zero points = Satisfactory
• One point = Conditional
• Two or more points = Unsatisfactory

Vehicle factor

A special scoring process is used for Factor 4, the vehicle factor. When a carrier has had at least 3 vehicle inspections in the 12 months before the audit, and/or if such inspections are performed during the audit, the vehicle factor will be evaluated based on the carrier’s Out-of-Service (OOS) rate as well as compliance with acute and critical regulations. The OOS rate will affect the vehicle factor as follows:

Scoring the accident factor

Factor 6, Accident, is not based on regulatory compliance but rather the carrier’s recordable accident rate during the past 12 months, when the carrier had at least two such accidents in that time.

A recordable accident, as defined in 390.5, is an accident involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public roadway that results in:

• A fatality,
• Bodily injury requiring immediate medical treatment away from the scene of the accident, or
• One or more motor vehicles incurring disabling damage as a result of the accident requiring the vehicle(s) to be towed or otherwise transported away from the scene.

The carrier’s accident rate per million miles is compared with the national average rate from the years 1994–1996:

• 0.747 for all carriers, or
• 0.839 for carriers operating entirely within a 100-air-mile radius (a higher rate is used for these short-haul or “urban” operators because they typically have more exposure to risk).

Carriers are expected to keep their accident rates below twice these national averages. Therefore, carriers will receive an unsatisfactory rating on Factor 6 if their accident rate is greater than:

• 1.7 for carriers operating entirely within a radius of 100 air miles, or
• 1.5 for all other carriers.

What about accidents that were not preventable?

ALL recordable accidents will be used in the initial rating process. However, the carrier can contest that process by presenting compelling evidence that the recordable rate is not a fair means of evaluating its accident factor. The FMSCA will then consider whether the carrier’s accidents were preventable or not. Preventability is judged according to this standard:

"If a driver, who exercises normal judgment and foresight could have foreseen the possibility of the accident that in fact occurred, and avoided it by taking steps within his/her control which would not have risked causing another kind of mishap, the accident was preventable."

• Following an audit, carriers will receive a safety rating and a list of problems to correct.

The carrier’s overall safety rating is based on the ratings in each individual factor, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) uses a computerized rating formula to assess the audit results and assign a safety rating.

Motor Carrier Safety Rating Table

The proposed safety rating

Within 30 days after a compliance review, the carrier will receive a letter from FMCSA headquarters containing the proposed safety rating and a list of compliance problems that need correcting, if any. The rating is finalized as follows:

• In response to a safety rating, carriers may contest the given rating by requesting either an administrative review or a rating change.

Under 385.15 and 385.17, motor carriers have the right to petition for a review of their ratings if there are factual or procedural disputes, and to request another review after corrective actions have been taken:

• Administrative reviews — Requests for an administrative review must be made within 90 days of the date of the proposed or final safety rating, or within 90 days after denial of a request for a change in rating. If the proposed rating is “unsatisfactory,” the request should be made within 15 days or the carrier risks being placed out of service before the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has time to complete its review. (385.15)
• Requests for rating change — A motor carrier that has taken action to correct the deficiencies that resulted in a proposed or final rating of “conditional” or “unsatisfactory” may request a rating change at any time. The request must be based on evidence that the carrier has taken corrective actions and that its operations currently meet the safety standards. (385.17)

Auditing of intermodal equipment providers

The FMCSA does not assign safety ratings to intermodal equipment providers. Rather, the agency performs “roadability reviews” to verify compliance with Parts 390, 393, and 396. After such a review, the FMCSA may cite the intermodal equipment provider for violations, impose civil penalties, forbid the use of particular pieces of equipment, or order the provider to stop tendering any equipment to motor carriers.

• Once a new motor carrier has been in operation long enough, they will be audited as a new entrant.
• This type of audit doesn’t result in a safety rating but will assess the need for corrective actions.

New motor carriers are subject to a “new-entrant safety audit” during the first 18 months of business. The audit itself usually occurs after the carrier has been in business for at least 3 months, but no more than 12 months, with a final report issued within 18 months.

The purpose of this pass/fail audit is to provide educational and technical assistance to the carrier and to gather enough data to assess whether the carrier has an adequate safety management program. Those who fail the audit are required to take corrective actions and prove compliance before being granted permanent registration as a motor carrier. The audit does NOT result in a safety rating.

The audit will be conducted once the carrier has been in operation long enough (generally at least three months) to have enough records on hand to allow the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to evaluate the carrier’s safety management controls. The audit can be expedited if serious violations are discovered.

All records and documents required for the safety audit must be made available for inspection upon request by the FMCSA. The areas for review include, but are not limited to, driver qualification, hours of service, vehicle maintenance, the accident register, and drug and alcohol testing.

For details on how carriers are assessed during the audit, refer to Part 385, Appendix A.

Sixteen regulations have been identified as essential elements of basic safety management controls necessary to operate in interstate commerce. If a motor carrier has not complied with any one of these regulations, the carrier will fail the new-entrant audit and will receive notice that its U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) new-entrant registration will be revoked. Violations that will result in automatic failure of the audit are:

1. Not implementing a drug and/or alcohol testing program. (382.115(a)-(b))
2. Using a driver known to have an alcohol content of 0.04 or greater to perform a safety-sensitive function. (382.201)
3. Using a driver who has refused to submit to an alcohol or drug test required under Part 382. (382.211)
4. Using a driver known to have tested positive for a controlled substance. (382.215)
5. Failing to implement a random drug and/or alcohol testing program. (382.305)
6. Using a driver who does not possess a commercial driver’s license (CDL) when required. (383.3(a)/383.23(a))
7. Using an employee with a CDL which is suspended, revoked, or canceled by a state. (383.37(a))
8. Using a disqualified CDL driver. (383.51(a))
9. Not having proper financial responsibility coverage. (387.7(a))
10. Not having proper financial responsibility coverage for a passenger-carrying vehicle. (387.31(a))
11. Using a disqualified driver (CDL or non-CDL). (391.15(a))
12. Using a physically unqualified driver. (391.11(b)(4))
13. Failing to require a driver to make a record of duty status. (395.8(a))
14. Using a CMV declared “out of service” or using it before the repairs are made. (396.9(c)(2))
15. Failing to correct out-of-service defects listed on daily vehicle inspection reports. (396.11(a)(3))
16. Using a CMV that was not periodically inspected. (396.17(a))

When the audit is complete, the auditor will review the findings with the company. If the company fails the audit, it typically will be given 60 days to correct the problems. This period is reduced to 45 days for carriers that transport passengers or hazardous materials in quantities requiring placarding.

More details about new-entrant audits can be found in Part 385, Subparts D and H.

• The Safety Management Cycle is a six-component process improvement tool used by the FMCSA to analyze a carrier’s safety and compliance program and help address noncompliance issues.
• The Cycle is made up of six SMPs that signify key components of a carrier’s safety plan.
• The six SMPs are policies and procedures, roles and responsibilities, qualification and hiring, training and communication, monitoring and tracking, and meaningful action.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) describes the Safety Management Cycle as the “signature tool” of its investigative process. Fortunately, this tool is publicly available for use by motor carriers looking to address their safety and compliance issues and improve their Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores.

Like other process improvement tools, the Safety Management Cycle is applied as a step-by-step process to determine why safety and compliance issues are occurring. The tool also provides a framework for brainstorming remedies, choosing solutions, and designing and implementing plans to improve a carrier’s safety operations.

The Safety Management Cycle can be broken down into six components, known as “Safety Management Processes” (SMPs), as shown below. The six arrows identify key components of a carrier’s safety program where problems may arise. All six “spokes” in the diagram must be working effectively in order for a motor carrier’s safety efforts to succeed.

The SMPs are:

• Policies and procedures define the “what” and “how” of a motor carrier’s operations. Policies establish the guidelines for how motor carriers and their employees behave in a given situation; procedures explain how to accomplish these policies. The other five SMPs focus on how to implement these policies and procedures.
• Roles and responsibilities define what each employee should do to implement policies and procedures.
• Qualifications and hiring covers finding and qualifying people for the defined roles and responsibilities.
• Training and communication of a motor carrier’s policies, procedures, roles, and responsibilities, so that every employee understands the expectations and has the skills and knowledge to perform their assigned functions.
• Monitoring and tracking of employee performance, which enables companies to be aware of their employees’ safety performance and compliance with its policies and procedures and how they execute their roles and responsibilities. Monitoring involves looking at the performance of the operation, while tracking is assessing the data collected, leading to meaningful action.
• Meaningful action gives motor carriers the tools to correct or improve employee behavior, including, for example, refresher training and positive reinforcement such as rewards or bonuses, in order to improve the motor carrier’s overall safety performance.

When an FMCSA investigator looks at a motor carrier’s compliance efforts, the investigator will use the Safety Management Cycle to locate and point out specific areas of noncompliance. When problems are found during an audit, the auditor will want to see the company’s policies and procedures, the assigned roles and responsibilities, and the company’s hiring, qualification, and training practices. The auditor will then want to know how the carrier is tracking and monitoring compliance and will check if there has been meaningful action taken to address the problems.

The FMCSA traditionally leaves it up to the motor carrier to decide the details on implementing safety management controls that best fit its operations. The FMCSA only verifies that the company has some type of controls in place and the carrier is operating safely and compliantly.

If the company were not operating compliantly and safely, as proven by roadside inspection data or the results of an investigation, the FMCSA would likely decide that the company does not have adequate safety management controls in place.

The Safety Management Cycle uses this abstract idea of having controls in place and offers motor carriers — and enforcement personnel — a more concrete, step-by-step guide for implementing a solution. When a carrier performs a self-audit or undergoes an investigation of its records by the FMCSA, the root cause of a safety or compliance problem will fall within one or more of the six SMPs and can be addressed.

• Policies (the “what”) and procedures (the “why” and “how”) go together by setting guidelines for employees to follow and naming methods for achieving them.

Effective safety management begins with policies and procedures. Policies provide a simple explanation of what a motor carrier will and will not allow. Having policies that clearly state what is expected allows everyone, including supervisory and management personnel, to see the company’s safety and compliance vision and goals. The policies should be simple, straightforward, and measurable, with no room for interpretation. Policies also need to cover the consequences of failure to follow the policies.

If policies are the “what” and “why,” procedures are the “how to.” They explain how to accomplish policies and establish a means to verify that employees and management are complying with the policies.

For example, an hours-of-service policy might require all commercial drivers (and dispatchers and supervisors) to comply with federal hours-of-service rules and explain the consequences of failing to do so. Corresponding procedures may explain which log form to use, how and when to submit logs, whether to use the 60- or 70-hour limit, how logs are to be audited, etc.

Some carriers choose not to have procedures but instead use their policies to dictate everything, and that is acceptable. For any policy to be truly effective, it must be distributed and understood by everyone in the company (see training and communication below), and it must not conflict with any other policies that are in place. As an example of conflicting policies, an hours-of-service policy may require strict adherence to the rules while another policy may require drivers to always deliver on time, no matter what. This would make it impossible for a driver to comply with both policies at the same time.

Policies and procedures do not need to match the regulations; in fact, they can exceed them. Doing so may be advantageous, but companies should make sure that a more stringent policy does not conflict with another area of regulation or law. For example, a hiring policy that exceeds minimum Department of Transportation requirements may violate fair hiring practices under employment laws.

• All employees must know their role and responsibility for any given policy in order for it to govern the company effectively.

For policies and procedures to be effective, roles and responsibilities must be assigned. A safety program without assigned accountability leads to inefficiencies and noncompliance. In short, every employee — from the drivers to the managers — must know what their roles and responsibilities are within the safety program. Here are a few examples:

• Managers and supervisors need to be held responsible for overseeing the development of policies and procedures.
• An employee needs to be assigned the responsibility of making sure that the policies are kept current and employees are trained on their content.
• An employee needs to be responsible for verifying that the policies are being followed.

A company should not create a “paper tiger” policy or procedure that no employee pays attention to after it’s written. It won’t take a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration investigator long to figure out if a carrier’s policies and procedures hold people accountable for their assigned roles and responsibilities.

• Safety management begins with recruiting and hiring qualified employees.

Qualification and hiring practices get the right person in the right position. Achieving that goal can involve creating job descriptions, structuring the hiring process, and developing hiring standards.

Qualification and hiring processes are especially critical when it comes to drivers. Hiring a bad driver can have a company-wide impact, on everything from safety to liability to profitability. However, effective qualification and hiring practices are critical for all positions that impact safety.

When hiring a dispatcher, safety person, technician, yard jockey, etc., a company should have a formal job description so applicants (and recruiters) know exactly what they are being hired to do. The hiring process should be backed by a strong recruiting and screening system built around the job requirements, to ensure the carrier is getting the right person into the job.

• Safety management continues with a comprehensive training program, from the first orientation to ongoing and refresher courses.

Once a motor carrier has the necessary policies and procedures, has assigned roles and responsibilities, and has hired the right people, the next step is to examine the carrier’s training program. This includes initial, ongoing, and remedial or refresher training.

The initial training is often referred to as “orientation,” and it plays a critical role. It’s the company’s one chance to make a strong impression on its new hires regarding safety and how the vehicles are being operated. Rushing the orientation process tends to create the opposite impression — that all the carrier cares about is getting drivers turning miles as fast as possible.

Orientation must be followed with and reinforced by ongoing and refresher training. Communication of policies, procedures, roles, and responsibilities is critical if you want employees to be focused on compliance and safety. Training must be reinforced with ongoing communication for all safety-related positions in the company, from drivers to managers. Section 390. 3(e) requires that everyone involved in safety must know and apply the safety regulations (as they relate to the position), and it is the motor carrier’s responsibility to ensure this happens.

• Lastly, carriers must review their entire safety management process when determining how to act on detected problems.

The final step in the Safety Management Cycle is for a company to take meaningful action when monitoring and tracking have indicated a problem. Taking meaningful action should correct the problem at its roots.

The process of meaningful action begins with a review of the relevant policies and procedures that relate to the problem. Are they written properly? Are people following them? If not, was there a breakdown in training or communications, or perhaps in the hiring standards? Each of the other five Safety Management Processes should be examined and revised as needed. Common solutions may include:

• Revising policies and procedures;
• Reassigning responsibilities;
• Improving the hiring and qualification standards for the positions involved;
• Deciding that employees are not qualified for the position they are occupying, which may lead to replacement or retraining; and
• Improving training and/or communications.

To see if “meaningful action” is having an impact, carriers need to continue monitoring and tracking. On the other hand, if the same problem is constantly surfacing but all other components of the Safety Management Cycle are in place and operating correctly, you may not be taking the actions necessary to address the problem.

• A carrier, if found to be noncompliant, might be subject to an administrative judgment within the FMCSA such as a Notice of Violation or a Notice of Claim.

Like other federal agencies, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has a process in place for administrative proceedings. These are non-judicial proceedings within the agency, used to:

• Determine whether a motor carrier, intermodal equipment provider, driver, property broker, freight forwarder, or any other entity subject to the FMCSA’s jurisdiction has failed to comply with agency regulations or their underlying statutes; and
• Issue an appropriate order to compel compliance with the statute or regulation, assess a civil penalty, or both, if such violations are found.

Administrative proceedings are regulated under Part 386. These regulations include important information for motor carriers to be aware of should they become subject to enforcement actions, particularly a Notice of Violation, a Notice of Claim, an out-of-service order, or other serious disciplinary actions. In addition, Part 386 governs the proceedings for resolving conflicts in the driver medical examination process under 391.47.

A Notice of Violation is a formal written notice alleging violations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs), Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMRs), or FMCSA commercial regulations (FMCCRs). A Notice of Violation is used when the FMCSA wants to give the recipient a chance to correct the violations, rather than simply issuing a fine.

A Notice of Claim is a formal written notice that the FMCSA is assessing a civil penalty (fine) for violations of the FMCSRs, HMRs, and/or FMCCRs.

In general, when a motor carrier or other entity receives notice that it is the subject of, or is otherwise involved in, an administrative proceeding, the notice will include instructions and deadlines concerning how the carrier may respond or otherwise be involved in the process (e.g., by paying a penalty, appearing for a hearing, correcting violations, contesting a penalty, etc.). (Part 386)

If a carrier becomes involved in an administrative proceeding, they should be aware of the deadlines. For example, after receiving a Notice of Claim, the carrier has 30 days to either pay the penalty, contest the alleged violations, or seek binding arbitration to dispute the amount of the penalty. Failing to meet that deadline could result in a default judgment and order to pay the full penalty amount.