Motor Carrier Safety Specialist Certification Act

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Motor Carrier Safety Specialist 
Certification Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century 
        provides for the Secretary of Transportation to work in 
        partnership with States and other political jurisdictions to 
        establish programs to improve motor carrier, commercial motor 
        vehicle, and driver safety, to support a safe and efficient 
        transportation system by focusing resources on strategic safety 
        investments, to promote safe for-hire and private 
        transportation, including transportation of passengers and 
        hazardous materials, to identify high-risk carriers and 
        drivers, and to invest in activities likely to generate maximum 
        reductions in the number and severity of commercial motor 
        vehicle crashes.
            (2) The Department of Transportation's Office of Inspector 
        General Report on the Federal Highway Administration's Motor 
        Carrier Safety Program found that established policies and 
        procedures do not ensure that motor carrier safety regulations 
        are enforced.
            (3) The Report also found that the Safety Status 
        Measurement System (known as ``SafeStat''), which was 
        implemented to identify and target motor carriers with high-
        risk safety records, cannot target all carriers with the worst 
        records because its database is incomplete and inaccurate, and 
        data input is not timely.
            (4) Testimony by the General Accounting Office before the 
        House of Representatives' Subcommittee on Transportation and 
        Related Agencies indicated that SafeStat's ability to target 
        high-risk carriers is also limited by out-of-date census data.
            (5) There are no procedures in place to certify Federal, 
        State, and private motor carrier safety specialists and no 
        standards to ensure consistent carrier compliance reviews.
            (6) There are no established protocols for acceptance of 
        data from third-party or non-Federal or non-State motor carrier 
        safety specialists, which detail the safety factors of motor 
        carriers.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide for the 
creation of a certification program for Motor Carrier Safety 
Specialists and to establish certain informational requirements in 
order to promote highway safety through a comprehensive review of motor 
carriers.

SEC. 3. CREATION OF A CERTIFICATION PROGRAM FOR MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY 
              SPECIALISTS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 311 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end thereof the following:
``Sec. 31148. Certified motor carrier safety specialists
    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Transportation, in consultation 
with the Motor Carrier Safety Specialist Certification Board, shall 
establish a program for the training and certification of Federal, 
State and local government, and nongovernmental motor carrier safety 
specialists by an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is--
            ``(1) exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(1) of such 
        Code established for the exclusive purpose of developing and 
        administering training, testing, and certification procedures 
        for motor carrier safety specialists; and
            ``(2) designated by the Secretary as the entity for 
        carrying out the requirements of this section.
    ``(b) Certified Compliance Review Required.--No safety compliance 
review under this chapter, or required by this chapter, chapter 315, or 
the regulations in part 390 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, 
more than 3 years after the date of enactment of the Motor Carrier 
Safety Specialist Certification Act is valid unless it is conducted by 
a motor carrier safety specialist certified under the program 
established under subsection (a).''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 311 of 
title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof 
the following:

``31148. Certified motor carrier safety specialists.''.

SEC. 4. PHASE-IN OF CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.

    (a) Establishment of Program.--The Secretary of Transportation 
shall establish the program required by section 31148(a) of title 49, 
United States Code, within 12 months after the date of enactment of 
this Act.
    (b) Certification of Federal Motor Carrier Safety Specialists.--The 
Secretary shall ensure that--
            (1) within 24 months after the date of enactment of this 
        Act--
                    (A) at least 50 percent of the employees of the 
                Department of Transportation who perform reviews to 
                determine compliance of carriers in accordance with 
                regulations promulgated by the Secretary of 
                Transportation, and
                    (B) all State and local government employees who 
                perform such compliance reviews, are certified under 
                the program established under section 31148 of title 
                49, United States Code; and
            (2) within 36 months after such date, all Federal, State 
        and local employees, and all non-governmental personnel, 
        performing such compliance reviews are so certified.

SEC. 5. CLEARINGHOUSE FUNCTION.

    (a) Verification of Information.--Section 31106(a) of title 49, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end of the following:
            ``(5) In carrying out the provisions of this section and 
        section 31309, the Secretary shall accept and include 
        information, subject to verification by a clearinghouse 
        designated by the Motor Carrier Safety Specialist Certification 
        Board, obtained from non-governmental motor carrier safety 
        specialists certified under section 31148. The Secretary of 
        Transportation shall work with the Motor Carrier Safety 
        Specialist Certification Board and State Governments to 
        establish by January 1, 2001 data exchange protocols that will 
        enable the Secretary of Transportation to process data received 
        from motor carrier safety specialists certified under section 
        31148.''.
    (b) Information Available to Public.--Section 31106(e) of title 49, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 
``The Secretary of Transportation shall ensure that information 
obtained from motor carrier safety specialists certified under section 
31148 of title 49, United States Code, is made available to the public, 
in accordance with such policy, in an easily accessible and 
understandable manner through the clearinghouse designated by the Motor 
Carrier Safety Specialist Certification Board no later than January 1, 
2002.''.

SEC. 6. PUBLIC EDUCATION FUNCTION.

    The Secretary of Transportation shall work with the Motor Carrier 
Safety Specialist Certification Board to establish and carry out a 
public education campaign to promote the use of safety performance 
information available under chapter 311 of title 49, United States 
Code, for the purpose of encouraging the use of such information in the 
decision-making process for hiring motor carriers.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    Motor Carrier Safety Specialist.--A Motor Carrier Safety Specialist 
is an individual who:
            (1) is responsible for conducting regulatory compliance 
        reviews and safety inspections of commercial motor carriers,

Summary: Directs the Secretary to work with the Motor Carrier Safety Specialist Certification Board to establish and carry out a public education campaign to promote the use of safety performance information in the decision-making process for hiring motor carriers. Defines motor carrier safety specialist to mean an individual responsible for conducting regulatory compliance reviews and safety inspections of commercial motor carriers.