Update on Relevant U.S. Regulations

FMCSA Publishes Proposed Changes to Annual UCR Fees
On March 16, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) amending the regulations for the annual registration fees that states collect from motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders and leasing companies for the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) Plan and Agreement for the 2024 registration year and subsequent registration years. Comments are due by April 17.

FMCSA Extends Comment Period Regarding Broker and Freight Forwarder Financial Responsibility Request
On March 8, FMCSA extended the comment period for its Jan. 5 NPRM proposing rules to regulate broker and freight forwarder financial responsibility in five separate areas. Comments are due by April 6.

FMCSA Reopens Comments on the Definitions of Broker and Bona Fide Agents
On March 8, FMCSA reopened the comment period for its interim guidance, Definitions of Broker and Bona Fide Agents. The interim guidance informs the public and regulated entities about FMCSA’s interpretation of the definitions of “broker” and “bona fide agents” as it relates to all brokers of transportation by commercial motor vehicle. FMCSA provided clarification on its interpretation of the definitions of broker and bona fide agents, in addition to meeting other criteria required by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The comment period will be reopened on March 31. Comments are due by April 6.

FMCSA Announces Property Broker Listening Session
On March 8, FMCSA announced it will host a listening session pertaining to two matters relating to the regulation of property brokers: (1) a Jan. 5 NPRM proposing to regulate five separate areas of broker and freight forwarder financial responsibility and (2) the Nov. 16 interim guidance regarding FMCSA’s interpretation of the definitions of broker and bona fide agents as they relate to all brokers of transportation by motor vehicle. The virtual meeting will take place on March 31 at 10:00am EDT.

NTSB Announces Meeting Regarding a Highway Investigative Report
On March 7, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) published notice of a virtual meeting regarding 69683 Highway Investigative Report—Multivehicle Collision Involving a Milk Tank Combination Vehicle and Stopped Traffic Queue, Phoenix, June 9, 2021. The meeting will take place on March 28 at 9:30am EDT.

Update on Exemptions

FMCSA Issues Clarification Regarding Waymo/Aurora Warning Devices Exemption Request
On March 9, FMCSA published a notice making clarifications to its March 3 notice and request for comments on a joint exemption request from Waymo and Aurora Operations for a five-year exemption from the requirement of placing warning devices around stopped commercial motor vehicles, the requirement that lamps for warning devices be steady-burning and the utilization of a warning device for stopped vehicles not currently allowed by agency rules. FMCSA clarifies that the application was filed on behalf of a class of motor carriers operating autonomous driving systems (ADS) equipped CMVs and is not limited to Waymo or Aurora. The notice also extends the public comment. Comments are due by April 10.

CVSA Active Exemption Tracker
CVSA maintains a list of active exemptions issued by FMCSA. The exemption tracker can be found at cvsa.org under the “Inspections” tab at the top of the page.