Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 80745 

annual effect on the economy of 

$100,000,000 or more, and may result in 

a major increase in costs or prices for 

Federal, State, or local government 

agencies. It will not have significant 

adverse effects on competition, 

employment, investment, productivity, 

innovation, or on the ability of United 

States- based enterprises to compete 

with foreign-based enterprises in 

domestic and export markets. 

List of Subjects in 44 CFR Part 206 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Coastal zone, Community 

facilities, Disaster assistance, Fire 

prevention, Grant programs—housing 

and community development, Housing, 

Insurance, Intergovernmental relations, 

Loan programs—housing and 

community development, Natural 

resources, Penalties, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the Federal Emergency 

Management Agency proposes to amend 

44 CFR part 206, subpart B, as follows: 

PART 206—FEDERAL DISASTER 

ASSISTANCE 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 206 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Robert T. Stafford Disaster 

Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 

U.S.C. 5121 through 5207; Homeland 

Security Act of 2002, 6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.; 

Department of Homeland Security Delegation 

9001.1. 

■ 2. Revise § 206.48 introductory text 

and paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 206.48 Factors considered when 

evaluating a Governor’s request for a major 

disaster declaration. 

When FEMA reviews a Governor’s 

request for major disaster assistance 

under the Stafford Act, these are the 

primary factors in making a 

recommendation to the President 

whether assistance is warranted. FEMA 

considers other relevant information as 

well. 

(a) Public Assistance Program. FEMA 

evaluates the following factors to 

evaluate the need for assistance under 

the Public Assistance Program. 

(1) Estimated cost of the assistance. 

FEMA evaluates the estimated cost of 

Federal and non-Federal public 

assistance against the statewide 

population to give some measure of the 

per capita impact within the State. 

FEMA uses a figure of $2.32 per capita 

as an indicator that the disaster is of 

such size that it might warrant Federal 

assistance, and will adjust this figure 

annually based on the Consumer Price 

Index for all Urban Consumers. With the 

exception of the District of Columbia, 

the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, U.S. 

Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of 

the Northern Mariana Islands, American 

Samoa, and Guam, FEMA further 

adjusts each State’s per capita indicator 

according to each State’s Total Taxable 

Resources (TTR) as reported by the U.S. 

Department of Treasury. FEMA is 

establishing a minimum threshold of 

$1.535 million in public assistance 

damages per disaster in the belief that 

FEMA can reasonably expect even the 

lowest population States to cover this 

level of public assistance damage. 

FEMA will adjust this minimum 

threshold annually based on the 

Consumer Price Index for all Urban 

Consumers. FEMA will publish the 

adjusted figures annually in the Federal 

Register. 

(2) Localized impacts. FEMA 

evaluates the impact of the disaster at 

the county and local government level, 

as well as impacts at the American 

Indian and Alaskan Native Tribal 

Government levels, because at times 

there are extraordinary concentrations 

of damages that might warrant Federal 

assistance even if the statewide per 

capita is not met. This is particularly 

true where critical facilities are involved 

or where localized per capita impacts 

might be extremely high. For example, 

FEMA has at times seen localized 

damages in the tens or even hundreds 

of dollars per capita though the 

statewide per capita impact was low. 

(3) Insurance coverage in force. FEMA 

considers the amount of insurance 

coverage that is in force or should have 

been in force as required by law and 

regulation at the time of the disaster, 

and reduces the amount of anticipated 

assistance by that amount. 

(4) Hazard mitigation. To recognize 

and encourage mitigation, FEMA 

considers the extent to which State and 

local government measures contributed 

to the reduction of disaster damages for 

the disaster under consideration. For 

example, if a State can demonstrate in 

its disaster request that a Statewide 

building code or other mitigation 

measures are likely to have reduced the 

damages from a particular disaster, 

FEMA considers that in the evaluation 

of the request. This could be especially 

significant in those disasters where, 

because of mitigation, the estimated 

public assistance damages fell below the 

per capita indicator. 

(5) Recent multiple disasters. FEMA 

looks at the disaster history within the 

last 12-month period to better evaluate 

the overall impact on the State or 

locality. FEMA considers declarations 

under the Stafford Act as well as 

declarations by the Governor and the 

extent to which the State has spent its 

own funds. 

(6) Programs of other Federal 

assistance. FEMA also considers 

programs of other Federal agencies 

because at times their programs of 

assistance might more appropriately 

meet the needs created by the disaster. 

* * * * * 

Pete Gaynor, 

Administrator, Federal Emergency 

Management Agency. 

[FR Doc. 2020–27094 Filed 12–11–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9111–23–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

49 CFR Parts 385 and 391 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2018–0224] 

RIN 2126–AC15 

Record of Violations 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA proposes to eliminate 

the requirement that drivers operating 

commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in 

interstate commerce prepare and submit 

a list of their convictions for traffic 

violations to their employers annually. 

This requirement is largely duplicative 

of a separate provision that requires 

each motor carrier to make an annual 

inquiry to obtain the motor vehicle 

record (MVR) for each driver it employs 

from every State in which the driver 

holds or has held a CMV operator’s 

license or permit in the past year. To 

ensure motor carriers are aware of traffic 

violations for a driver who is licensed 

by a foreign authority rather than by a 

State, that provision would be amended 

to provide that motor carriers must 

make an annual inquiry to each driver’s 

licensing authority where a driver holds 

or has held a CMV operator’s license or 

permit. This change would require 

motor carriers to request the MVR 

equivalent from Canadian and Mexican 

driver’s licensing authorities. FMCSA 

expects that removing the requirement 

for drivers to provide a list of their 

convictions for traffic violations to their 

employers annually would reduce the 

paperwork burden on drivers and motor 

carriers without adversely affecting 

CMV safety. 

DATES: Comments on this notice of 

proposed rulemaking (NPRM) and 

information collection must be received 

on or before February 12, 2021. 


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80746 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

1A ‘‘major rule’’ means any rule that the 

Administrator of OIRA at OMB finds has resulted 

in or is likely to result in (a) an annual effect on 

the economy of $100 million or more; (b) a major 

increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual 

industries, Federal agencies, State agencies, local 

government agencies, or geographic regions; or (c) 

significant adverse effects on competition, 

employment, investment, productivity, innovation, 

or on the ability of United States-based enterprises 

to compete with foreign-based enterprises in 

domestic and export markets (5 U.S.C. 804(2)). 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

regarding this NPRM identified by 

docket number FMCSA–2018–0224 

using any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2018-0224. 

Follow the online instructions for 

submitting comments. 

• Mail: Dockets Operations, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: West 

Building, Ground Floor, Room W12– 

140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. To be sure someone is 

there to help you, please call (202) 366– 

9317 or (202) 366–9826 before visiting 

Dockets Operations. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Richard Clemente, Office of Driver and 

Carrier Operations, at Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 

20590–0001; (202) 366–4325; or 

MCPSD@dot.gov. If you have questions 

on viewing or submitting material to the 

docket, call Dockets Operations at (202) 

366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Participation and Request for 

Comments 

A. Submitting Comments to the NPRM 

If you submit a comment to this 

NPRM, please include the docket 

number (FMCSA–2018–0224), indicate 

the specific section of this document to 

which each comment applies, and 

provide a reason for each suggestion or 

recommendation. You may submit your 

comments and material online or by fax, 

mail, or hand delivery, but please use 

only one of these means. FMCSA 

recommends that you include your 

name and a mailing address, an email 

address, or a phone number in the body 

of your document so that FMCSA can 

contact you if there are questions 

regarding your submission. 

To submit your comment online, go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2018-0224, 

click on the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ button 

and type your comment into the text 

box on the following screen. Choose 

whether you are submitting your 

comment as an individual or on behalf 

of a third party and then submit. 

If you submit your comments by mail 

or hand delivery, submit them in an 

unbound format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 

11 inches, suitable for copying and 

electronic filing. If you submit 

comments by mail and would like to 

know that they reached the facility, 

please enclose a stamped, self-addressed 

postcard or envelope. 

FMCSA will consider all comments 

and material received during the 

comment period and may make changes 

based on your comments. 

Confidential Business Information 

Confidential Business Information 

(CBI) is commercial or financial 

information that is both customarily and 

actually treated as private by its owner. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 

(5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from 

public disclosure. If your comments 

responsive to this NPRM contain 

commercial or financial information 

that is customarily treated as private, 

that you actually treat as private, and 

that is relevant or responsive to this 

NPRM, it is important that you clearly 

designate the submitted comments as 

CBI. Please mark each page of your 

submission that constitutes CBI as 

‘‘PROPIN’’ to indicate it contains 

proprietary information. FMCSA will 

treat such marked submissions as 

confidential under the Freedom of 

Information Act, and they will not be 

placed in the public docket for this 

rulemaking. Submissions containing 

CBI should be sent to Mr. Brian Dahlin, 

Chief, Regulatory Analysis Division, 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590– 

0001. Any comments FMCSA receives 

that are not specifically designated as 

CBI will be placed in the public docket 

for this rulemaking. 

B. Viewing Comments and Documents 

To view comments, as well as any 

documents mentioned as being available 

in the docket, go to http://

www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2018-0224 

and choose the document to review. If 

you do not have access to the internet, 

you may view the docket online by 

visiting Dockets Operations in Room 

W12–140 on the ground floor of the 

DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590– 

0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. To be sure someone is there to 

help you, please call (202) 366–9317 or 

(202) 366–9826 before visiting Dockets 

Operations. 

C. Privacy Act 

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), 

DOT solicits comments from the public 

to better inform its rulemaking process. 

DOT posts these comments, without 

edit, including any personal information 

the commenter provides, to 

www.regulations.gov, as described in 

the system of records notice DOT/ALL 

14—FDMS, which can be reviewed at 

https://www.transportation.gov/privacy. 

D. Waiver of Advance Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking 

Under 49 U.S.C. 31136(g)(1), FMCSA 

is required to publish an advance notice 

of proposed rulemaking or conduct a 

negotiated rulemaking if a proposed rule 

is likely to lead to the promulgation of 

a major rule.1 As this proposed rule is 

not likely to result in the promulgation 

of a major rule, the Agency is not 

required to issue an advance notice of 

proposed rulemaking or to proceed with 

a negotiated rulemaking. 

E. Comments on the Information 

Collection 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the information 

collection discussed in this NPRM can 

be sent to FMCSA within 60 days of 

publication using any of the methods 

described in ‘‘Public Participation and 

Request for Comments’’ above. 

II. Executive Summary 

A. Purpose of the Regulatory Action and 

Summary of the Major Provisions 

As part of FMCSA’s ongoing 

regulatory reform efforts to remove 

costly, redundant, and burdensome 

regulations, the Agency proposes to 

rescind 49 CFR 391.27, Record of 

violations, and all related references to 

the rule in the Federal Motor Carrier 

Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). Section 

391.27 provides that each motor carrier 

must, at least once every 12 months, 

require each driver it employs to 

prepare and furnish the motor carrier 

with a list of all violations of motor 

vehicle traffic laws and ordinances, 

other than violations involving only 

parking, of which the driver has been 

convicted or for which the driver has 

forfeited bond or collateral during the 

preceding 12 months. When a driver 

does not have any violations to report, 

the driver is required to furnish a 

certification to that effect. The motor 

carrier must retain the list of violations 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 80747 

2For purposes of part 391, the term ‘‘State’’ 

includes the District of Columbia (49 CFR 390.5T). 

3Available at https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/sites/ 

fmcsa.dot.gov/files/docs/safety/data-and-statistics/ 

413361/fmcsa-pocket-guide-2018-final-508- 

compliant.pdf, Exhibit 1–10 (accessed Apr. 22, 

2019). 

4The sum of the number of Canadian and 

Mexican drivers as a percentage of the total number 

of drivers in Exhibit 1–10 does not add up to 2.5 

percent due to rounding. 

5Motor carriers also must pay driver’s licensing 

authorities to request MVRs and MVR equivalents. 

The current OMB-approved information collection 

request associated with the reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements of §§ 391.23 and 391.25 

estimates the cost incurred by motor carriers to 

request MVRs based on the median for the 51 State 

driver’s licensing agencies (SDLAs). The median fee 

used in this analysis is based on the 51 SDLAs’ and 

Canadian licensing authorities’ fees. The median fee 

is $9 with or without the Canadian authorities’ fees. 

Thus, this new requirement imposes no new costs 

on motor carriers. 

6See Section IX.A., below, and footnote 10 for 

additional information. 

or certification of no violations in the 

driver’s qualification file. 

FMCSA would retain the requirement 

in § 391.25(a), Annual inquiry and 

review of driving record, for an annual 

MVR inquiry, which is largely 

duplicative of the requirement in 

§ 391.27 for drivers to provide an annual 

list of their violations to their motor 

carriers. Section 391.25 requires each 

motor carrier to make an annual inquiry 

to obtain the MVR for each driver it 

employs from every State 2 in which the 

driver holds or has held a CMV 

operator’s license or permit in the past 

year. The motor carrier is required to 

review the MVR obtained and to 

maintain a copy of it in the driver’s 

qualification file. Thus, § 391.25 

currently applies to all motor carriers, 

domestic and foreign, but is limited to 

inquiries for drivers licensed by a State. 

To ensure motor carriers are aware of 

traffic violations for a driver who is 

licensed by a foreign authority rather 

than by a State, FMCSA proposes to 

amend § 391.25(a) to require motor 

carriers to inquire annually of each 

driver’s licensing authority where a 

driver holds or has held a CMV 

operator’s license or permit. This 

change would require motor carriers to 

request the MVR equivalent from 

Canadian and Mexican driver’s 

licensing authorities. 

To maintain consistency within part 

391 with respect to requests for MVRs, 

FMCSA proposes conforming changes to 

the hiring process. Section 391.23, 

Investigation and inquiries, requires a 

motor carrier to make an inquiry to each 

State where the driver holds or has held 

a motor vehicle operator’s license or 

permit during the preceding 3 years to 

obtain the driver’s MVR when a motor 

carrier is hiring a driver. Changes would 

be made in § 391.23 to require motor 

carriers to make inquiries to each 

driver’s licensing authority where a 

driver holds or has held a motor vehicle 

operator’s license or permit. A change 

also would be made in § 391.21, 

Application for employment, to require 

each driver to provide on the 

employment application the issuing 

driver’s licensing authority of each 

unexpired CMV operator’s license or 

permit that has been issued to the driver 

so motor carriers could make the 

required inquiries under § 391.23. Other 

conforming changes are outlined in the 

section-by-section analysis in Section 

VII., below. 

B. Costs and Benefits 

The proposed elimination of § 391.27 

would result in cost savings to drivers, 

as they would no longer spend time 

completing a list of convictions for 

traffic violations. It would result in cost 

savings to motor carriers, as they would 

no longer have to file the lists in driver 

qualification files. The Agency estimates 

that rescinding § 391.27 would result in 

cost savings of $28.1 million over 10 

years, at a 7 percent discount rate. The 

annualized cost savings would be 

estimated at $4.0 million. 

The proposed changes in the FMCSRs 

to require inquiries to Canadian and 

Mexican driver’s licensing authorities 

would have minimal, if any, impact. 

Only a small proportion of CMV drivers 

operating in the United States are 

licensed by a foreign authority rather 

than by a State. Of the 6.2 million CMV 

drivers reported in FMCSA’s 2018 

Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus 

Statistics,3 the Agency estimates that at 

most only 2.0 percent are employed by 

Canadian motor carriers operating in the 

United States and 0.5 percent are 

employed by Mexican motor carriers 

operating in the United States. The 

combined total of 2.4 percent represents 

approximately 139,733 drivers reported 

as being employed by Canadian and 

Mexican motor carriers.4

The proposed changes would not 

increase reporting and recordkeeping 

costs for motor carriers or drivers. This 

is because the Motor Carrier 

Management Information System 

(MCMIS), the repository for the 

Agency’s driver population data, counts 

the total number of drivers reported by 

motor carriers, both foreign and 

domestic, and for purposes of 

information collection burden 

calculation, the median fee for obtaining 

an MVR or its equivalent from either a 

foreign or a domestic authority is 

generally the same.5 FMCSA uses the 

MCMIS driver population data, which 

currently includes drivers employed by 

Canadian and Mexican motor carriers, 

to calculate the burden associated with 

information collections and paperwork. 

Therefore, though FMCSA is proposing 

new requirements for motor carriers to 

request MVRs for their drivers operating 

in the United States who are licensed by 

a foreign authority rather than by a 

State, the current OMB-approved 

information collection already includes 

the reporting and recordkeeping costs 

and burdens. 

In addition, Canadian and Mexican 

motor carriers are already required by 

their applicable safety codes to request 

the equivalent of MVRs for their drivers 

from their country’s licensing 

authorities.6 Accordingly, FMCSA has 

determined that the proposed changes 

to §§ 391.23 and 391.25 to require 

inquiries to Canadian and Mexican 

driver’s licensing authorities to obtain 

the equivalent of MVRs would impose 

no new record keeping or reporting 

costs or burdens. Though Canadian and 

Mexican motor carriers would not be 

required to change their current 

business practices and would not have 

any new costs or burdens imposed as a 

result of the proposed rule, FMCSA 

continues to include the costs and 

burdens for requesting MVR equivalents 

in the current OMB-approved 

information collection to treat all motor 

carriers consistently and for 

administrative convenience. 

FMCSA does not expect this proposed 

rule would negatively affect CMV safety. 

Motor carriers would still be required by 

§ 391.25 to make an inquiry at least 

annually to each driver’s licensing 

authority in which an employed driver 

holds or has held a CMV operator’s 

license or permit to obtain the MVR of 

each driver they employ. Thus, motor 

carriers would still have a reliable way 

to learn of any convictions for traffic 

violations incurred by their driver 

employees. 

III. Legal Basis for the Rulemaking 

Sections 391.21, 391.23, 391.25, and 

391.27 in title 49 of the CFR are based 

on the authority of the Motor Carrier Act 

of 1935 (1935 Act) (Pub. L. 74–255, 49 

Stat. 543, 546, August 9, 1935) and the 

Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984 (1984 

Act) (Pub. L. 98–554, 98 Stat. 2832, 

2834, 2841, October 30, 1984), both as 

amended. 

This NPRM proposes to rescind 

§ 391.27 and to amend §§ 391.23 and 

391.25 to require motor carriers to make 

an inquiry to each driver’s licensing 


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80748 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

authority where each driver they 

propose to hire, or have employed for 

the last 12 months, holds or has held a 

CMV operator’s license or permit, to 

obtain the MVR for that driver. In 

addition, the Agency proposes to amend 

§ 391.21 to require drivers to provide on 

the employment application the issuing 

driver’s licensing authority of each 

unexpired CMV operator’s license or 

permit that has been issued to the 

driver. 

The 1935 Act, as codified at 49 U.S.C. 

31502(b), authorizes the Secretary of 

Transportation (Secretary) to ‘‘prescribe 

requirements for—(1) qualifications and 

maximum hours of service of employees 

of, and safety of operation and 

equipment of, a motor carrier; and (2) 

qualifications and maximum hours of 

service of employees of, and standards 

of equipment of, a motor private carrier, 

when needed to promote safety of 

operation.’’ This NPRM addresses the 

qualifications of motor carrier 

employees, consistent with the safe 

operation of CMVs. 

The 1984 Act, as codified at 49 U.S.C. 

31136, provides concurrent authority to 

regulate drivers, motor carriers, and 

vehicle equipment. Section 31136 

requires the Secretary to issue 

regulations on CMV safety including 

regulations to ensure that ‘‘commercial 

motor vehicles are . . . operated safely’’ 

(section 31136(a)(1)). The remaining 

statutory factors and requirements in 

section 31136(a), to the extent they are 

relevant, are also satisfied here. In 

accordance with section 31136(a)(2), the 

requirement for motor carriers to inquire 

of driver’s licensing authorities to obtain 

the MVR of each driver they employ 

would not impose any ‘‘responsibilities 

. . . on operators of commercial motor 

vehicles [that would] impair their 

ability to operate the vehicles safely.’’ 

This rule would not address medical 

standards for drivers or possible 

physical effects caused by driving CMVs 

(section 31136(a)(3) and (a)(4), 

respectively). FMCSA believes there is 

no basis to anticipate that drivers would 

be coerced (section 31136(a)(5)) because 

of this rulemaking. The Secretary has 

discretionary authority under 49 U.S.C. 

31133(a)(8) to prescribe, and thus to 

remove, recordkeeping and reporting 

requirements. This deregulatory action 

to rescind § 391.27 rests on that 

authority. 

The Administrator of FMCSA is 

delegated authority under 49 CFR 1.87 

to carry out the functions vested in the 

Secretary by 49 U.S.C. chapters 311 and 

315 as they relate to CMV operators, 

programs, and safety. 

Finally, prior to prescribing any 

regulations, FMCSA must consider their 

‘‘costs and benefits’’ (49 U.S.C. 

31136(c)(2)(A) and 31502(d)). Those 

factors are discussed in the Regulatory 

Analyses section of this proposed rule. 

IV. Background 

Currently, 49 CFR 391.27 specifies, in 

part and subject to limited exceptions, 

that each motor carrier must, at least 

once every 12 months, require each 

driver it employs to prepare and furnish 

the motor carrier with a list of all 

violations of motor vehicle traffic laws 

and ordinances, other than violations 

involving only parking, of which the 

driver has been convicted or for which 

the driver has forfeited bond or 

collateral during the preceding 12 

months. Section 391.27 became effective 

on January 1, 1971 (35 FR 6458, 6462, 

Apr. 22, 1970). 

On two previous occasions the 

Federal Highway Administration 

(FHWA), FMCSA’s predecessor agency, 

proposed removing § 391.27 and its 

related requirements. The initial 

proposal was included in a January 10, 

1994, NPRM titled ‘‘Removal of 

Obsolete and Redundant Regulations 

and Appendices’’ (59 FR 1366). In that 

document, FHWA stated the objective of 

§ 391.27 is to provide the employing 

motor carrier with information about a 

driver’s moving violations so the carrier 

can use the information to ensure that 

its driver has not been disqualified to 

drive a CMV (59 FR 1367). FHWA also 

stated that the requirements in § 391.27 

are unnecessary and redundant because 

commercial driver’s license (CDL) 

regulations already require CMV drivers 

to notify their current employers within 

30 days of any conviction for a nonparking violation in any kind of vehicle. 

FHWA stated further that it is a 

common practice for motor carriers to 

obtain State MVRs on each of their 

drivers once or more per year, though 

such action is not required. 

In response to the NPRM, nine 

commenters supported and eight 

opposed the removal of § 391.27. Some 

commenters recommended replacing 

the requirement for a list of violations 

with similar requirements involving an 

annual inquiry by motor carriers to the 

State driver’s licensing agencies (SDLA) 

regarding the employee’s driving record. 

Other commenters stated the 

requirement to provide a list of 

violations is the only notification 

requirement applicable to drivers of 

smaller commercial vehicles, and its 

removal would eliminate an important 

source of information. FHWA decided 

not to remove the requirement to 

provide a list of violations when the 

final rule was adopted, but stated it 

would evaluate the comments further 

and determine whether a future 

rulemaking to amend such requirements 

would be warranted (59 FR 60319, 

60320, November 23, 1994). 

The second proposal to eliminate 

§ 391.27 was included in a January 27, 

1997, NPRM titled ‘‘Review of the 

[FMCSRs]; Regulatory Removals and 

Substantive Amendments’’ (62 FR 

3855). FHWA proposed replacing the 

requirement for drivers to provide a list 

of violations with similar requirements 

involving an annual inquiry regarding 

drivers’ driving records by motor 

carriers to the SDLA, as proposed in 

§ 391.25. The proposal to eliminate 

§ 391.27 was based on two assumptions. 

The first assumption was that SDLAs 

would be able to provide a 

comprehensive record of crashes and 

traffic violations for both CDL and nonCDL CMV drivers so a motor carrier 

could ‘‘better verify that its drivers have 

not lost their driving privileges and 

have not been otherwise disqualified to 

drive a CMV’’ (62 FR 3858). The second 

assumption was that the State records 

would be more accurate than the 

practice of relying on a driver’s memory 

or honesty. 

Several commenters expressed 

reservations about the completeness and 

timeliness of SDLA information at that 

time. They believed that significant 

improvements needed to be made in the 

States’ collection and transmission of 

data before motor carriers should be 

asked to rely completely on State 

driving records. Other commenters 

supported the proposal as a more 

consistent and objective method to 

gather information. FHWA determined 

that it was in the best interest of safety 

to retain § 391.27. FHWA stated that, 

until the completeness and timeliness of 

State-based driver record information is 

substantially improved, it is important 

for motor carriers to obtain violation 

information from both the driver and 

State-based source to enable crossverification of information (63 FR 

33254, 33262, June 18, 1998). FHWA 

did amend § 391.25, however, to 

include a specific requirement for a 

motor carrier to make an annual inquiry 

for the driving record of each of its 

drivers to the appropriate agency of 

every State in which the driver held a 

CMV operator’s license or permit during 

the relevant time period (63 FR 33277). 

On October 2, 2017, as part of the 

President’s directives to review existing 

regulations to evaluate their continued 

necessity, determine whether they solve 

current problems, and evaluate whether 

they are burdensome, DOT published a 

Federal Register document seeking 

input on existing rules and other agency 

actions (82 FR 45750). DOT invited the 


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7Both comments are available in the docket for 

this rulemaking. 

public to identify rules and other 

actions that are good candidates for 

repeal, replacement, suspension, or 

modification. In response, the American 

Trucking Associations and the 

American Pyrotechnics Association 

recommended that FMCSA eliminate 

the requirement in § 391.27 that a driver 

provide his or her employer with a list 

of violations at least annually.7 They 

commented that the requirement is 

duplicative of § 391.25, which requires 

motor carriers to order a driver’s MVR 

at least annually, because the MVR 

contains violation information and must 

be placed in the driver’s qualification 

file. 

V. Discussion of Proposed Rulemaking 

FMCSA proposes to rescind 49 CFR 

391.27, Record of violations, and all 

related references to the rule in the 

FMCSRs. Section 391.27 provides that 

each motor carrier must, at least once 

every 12 months, require each driver it 

employs to prepare and furnish the 

motor carrier with a list of all violations 

of motor vehicle traffic laws and 

ordinances, other than violations 

involving only parking, of which the 

driver has been convicted or for which 

the driver has forfeited bond or 

collateral during that period. When a 

driver does not have any violations to 

report, the driver is required to furnish 

a certification to that effect. The motor 

carrier must file the list of violations or 

certification of no violations in the 

driver’s qualification file. 

FMCSA would retain the requirement 

in § 391.25(a), Annual inquiry and 

review of driving record, for an annual 

MVR inquiry, which is largely 

duplicative of the requirement in 

§ 391.27 for drivers to provide a list of 

their convictions for traffic violations to 

their motor carriers. With limited 

exceptions, § 391.25 requires each motor 

carrier to inquire annually to obtain the 

MVR for each driver it employs from 

every State in which the driver holds or 

has held a CMV operator’s license or 

permit in the past year. Additionally, 

the motor carrier is required to review 

the MVR obtained and to maintain a 

copy of it in the driver’s qualification 

file. 

Section 391.25 currently applies to all 

motor carriers, domestic and foreign, 

but is limited to inquiries for drivers 

licensed by a State. FMCSA proposes to 

amend § 391.25(a) to require that motor 

carriers make an annual inquiry to each 

driver’s licensing authority where a 

driver holds or has held a CMV 

operator’s license or permit. For 

example, any motor carrier that employs 

a driver who holds a Canadian or 

Mexican license to operate a CMV and 

is authorized to operate in the United 

States would be required to request the 

equivalent of an MVR from the 

Canadian or Mexican licensing 

authority where the driver is licensed. 

The proposed amendment to 

§ 391.25(a) represents a change for 

motor carriers from making inquiries for 

MVRs only to States, to include making 

inquiries for MVR equivalents to 

Canadian and Mexican driver’s 

licensing authorities. This change 

would have minimal, if any, impact, as 

relatively few drivers operating in the 

United States are licensed by a foreign 

authority rather than by a State. In 

addition, Canadian and Mexican motor 

carriers are already required by their 

applicable safety codes to request the 

equivalent of MVRs for their drivers 

from their country’s licensing 

authorities. Moreover, FMCSA currently 

includes the costs and burdens for 

requesting MVR equivalents in its 

current information collections. As 

explained above in the discussion of the 

legal basis for this rulemaking, FMCSA 

has the statutory authority to make the 

proposed change. 

To maintain consistency within part 

391 with respect to requests for MVRs, 

FMCSA proposes conforming changes to 

the hiring process. Paragraph (a)(1) of 

§ 391.23, Investigation and inquiries, 

requires a motor carrier hiring a driver 

to make an inquiry to each State where 

the driver holds or has held a motor 

vehicle operator’s license or permit 

during the preceding 3 years to obtain 

the driver’s MVR. Accordingly, the term 

‘‘State’’ in paragraph (a)(1) would be 

changed to provide that the inquiry 

must be to each ‘‘driver’s licensing 

authority.’’ Similar changes to replace 

references to States would be made in 

paragraph (b), which requires that a 

copy of the MVR obtained in response 

to the inquiry to each State must be 

placed in the driver’s qualification file. 

A change also would be made in 

§ 391.21(b)(5), Application for 

employment, to require each driver to 

provide on the employment application 

the issuing ‘‘driver’s licensing 

authority,’’ instead of ‘‘State,’’ of each 

unexpired CMV operator’s license or 

permit that has been issued to the driver 

so motor carriers could make the 

required inquiries under § 391.23. 

Other FMCSRs would be amended to 

reflect the elimination of § 391.27 or the 

change from an inquiry to each ‘‘State’’ 

to an inquiry to each ‘‘driver’s licensing 

authority’’ for the MVR. Paragraph (b)(6) 

in § 391.11, General qualifications of 

drivers, which provides that a driver is 

not qualified to operate a CMV unless 

the driver has prepared and furnished 

the motor carrier that employs him or 

her with the list of violations or the 

certificate required by § 391.27, would 

be removed. 

In § 391.51, General requirements for 

driver qualification files, paragraphs 

(b)(6) and (d)(3), which relate to 

maintaining in the driver qualification 

file a list or certificate relating to 

violations of motor vehicle laws and 

ordinances as required by § 391.27, 

would be removed. Paragraphs (b)(2) 

and (4), and (d)(1) would be amended to 

reflect the change from an inquiry to 

each ‘‘State’’ to an inquiry to each 

‘‘driver’s licensing authority’’ relating to 

maintaining copies of MVRs received 

pursuant to inquiries required by 

§ 391.23(a)(1) or 391.25(a). 

In § 391.63, Multiple-employer 

drivers, paragraph (a)(5), which 

provides that a multiple-employer 

driver need not furnish a list of 

violations or a certificate in accordance 

with § 391.27, would be removed. 

Eliminating the requirement for 

drivers to provide an annual list of their 

convictions for traffic violations would 

reduce the paperwork burden on drivers 

and motor carriers. The burden on 

motor carriers would be reduced 

because they would no longer be 

required to file the lists. The proposed 

changes to §§ 391.21, 391.23, and 391.25 

would not increase reporting or 

recordkeeping costs. FMCSA is not 

proposing changes to other selfreporting requirements applicable to 

drivers. 

FMCSA does not expect that this 

proposed rule would affect CMV safety 

adversely because the annual MVR 

inquiry would continue to provide a 

reliable way for motor carriers to learn 

of their drivers’ convictions for traffic 

violations. The distribution of the MVR 

also has become more reliable and 

efficient. The ‘‘Commercial Driver’s 

License Testing and Commercial 

Learner’s Permit Standards’’ final rule 

(76 FR 26854, May 9, 2011) required all 

States to upgrade their computer 

systems. In addition, FMCSA has 

conducted outreach and education with 

courts and judges, which has improved 

the transmission of convictions from 

courts to SDLAs. Accordingly, there 

have been improvements in data 

collection and transmission that support 

this rulemaking at this time. 

Retaining the annual MVR inquiry in 

§ 391.25, with the proposed amendment 

to paragraph (a), would satisfy the 

objective of § 391.27 to provide the 

employing motor carrier with the 

information necessary to ensure that its 

drivers have not lost their driving 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
80750 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

8See https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/registration/ 

commercial-drivers-license/may-motor-carriers-usethird-parties-ask-state-agencies (accessed Nov. 30, 

2020). 

privileges or been disqualified to drive 

a CMV. In the event a motor carrier 

desires additional information 

concerning violations that the MVR may 

not reflect (for example, violations 

occurring in a country where the driver 

is not licensed), FMCSA believes the 

best approach would be to allow the 

driver and motor carrier to determine 

the most efficient manner and process 

for them to obtain and communicate the 

information. 

FMCSA is proposing an additional 

amendment to § 391.23(b) that is 

unrelated to the proposal to rescind 

§ 391.27. Paragraph (b) of § 391.23 

currently requires when no MVR is 

received from a State that the motor 

carrier must (1) document a good faith 

effort to obtain the MVR, and (2) certify 

that no record exists for the driver in 

that State. FMCSA is proposing to 

remove the requirement for a 

certification. A motor carrier does not 

have access to a licensing authority’s 

records; therefore, it is impossible for 

the motor carrier to know what records 

are or are not maintained for a particular 

driver by the licensing authority. The 

requirement for the motor carrier to 

document a good faith effort to obtain 

the MVR would be retained. 

VI. International Impacts 

Motor carriers and drivers are subject 

to the laws and regulations of the 

countries in which they operate, unless 

an international agreement states 

otherwise. The specific impacts of this 

proposed rule on foreign licensed 

drivers and foreign motor carriers 

operating CMVs in the United States are 

discussed throughout the preamble of 

this NPRM. 

VII. Section-by-Section Analysis 

This section includes a summary of 

the proposed regulatory changes 

organized by the part and section 

number. 

A. Part 385 

Appendix B to Part 385—Explanation of 

Safety Rating Process 

FMCSA proposes conforming changes 

to section VII. List of Acute and Critical 

Regulations of Appendix B to Part 385. 

Due to the proposed removal of 

§ 391.51(b)(6), which relates to 

maintaining in the driver’s qualification 

file a list or certificate relating to 

violations of motor vehicle laws and 

ordinances required by § 391.27, 

paragraph (b)(7) would be renumbered 

as paragraph (b)(6). Accordingly, the 

current entry set forth in Appendix B to 

Part 385 relating to § 391.51(b)(7), 

failing to maintain the medical 

examiner’s certificate in the driver’s 

qualification file, would be renumbered 

as § 391.51(b)(6). 

B. Part 391 

Section 391.11 General Qualifications 

of Drivers 

In § 391.11, FMCSA proposes to 

remove paragraph (b)(6), which 

references the requirements of § 391.27. 

Paragraphs (b)(7) and (8) would be 

renumbered as (b)(6) and (7). 

Section 391.21 Application for 

Employment 

In paragraph (b)(5) of § 391.21, 

FMCSA proposes to change the 

reference to a ‘‘State’’ to a ‘‘driver’s 

licensing authority’’ to identify the 

entity issuing each unexpired CMV 

operator’s license or permit to the 

driver. 

Section 391.23 Investigation and 

Inquiries 

In paragraphs (a)(1) and (b) of 

§ 391.23, FMCSA proposes to change 

references to a ‘‘State’’ to a ‘‘driver’s 

licensing authority’’ to designate where 

the motor carrier should make inquiries 

for MVRs when a driver is hired and 

from where records are received. In 

paragraph (b), the requirement for a 

motor carrier to certify that no record 

exists, when no MVR is received from 

the licensing authority for a driver, 

would be removed. 

Section 391.25 Annual Inquiry and 

Review of Driving Record 

Similar to the revisions proposed in 

§ 391.23, FMCSA proposes to amend 

§ 391.25(a) by deleting the words ‘‘the 

appropriate agency of every State in 

which’’ and adding in their place the 

words ‘‘each driver’s licensing authority 

where’’ to designate where the motor 

carrier must make annual inquiries. 

Section 391.27 Record of Violations 

FMCSA proposes to remove § 391.27 

and reserve it for future use. 

Section 391.51 General Requirements 

for Driver Qualification Files 

In § 391.51, the Agency proposes to 

delete the words ‘‘State record’’ in 

paragraph (b)(2) and ‘‘State driver 

licensing agency’’ in paragraph (b)(4), 

and to add in their place the words 

‘‘driver’s licensing authority.’’ 

Paragraph (b)(6) would be deleted to 

remove a reference to the requirements 

of § 391.27, and paragraphs (b)(7) 

through (9) would be renumbered as 

paragraphs (b)(6) through (8). 

Paragraph (d)(1) would be revised to 

delete the words ‘‘State driver licensing 

agency’’ and to add in their place the 

words ‘‘driver’s licensing authority.’’ To 

remove a reference to the requirements 

of § 391.27, paragraph (d)(3) would be 

removed, and paragraphs (d)(4) through 

(6) would be renumbered as (d)(3) 

through (5). A cross reference in new 

paragraph (d)(3) would be changed 

because of the renumbering in 

paragraph (b). 

Section 391.63 Multiple-Employer 

Drivers 

In § 391.63, FMCSA proposes to 

remove paragraph (a)(5) to delete a 

reference to the requirements of 

§ 391.27. Paragraphs (a)(3) and (4) 

would be changed to conform by 

making punctuation changes. 

VIII. Guidance Statements 

FMCSA employs guidance statements 

to explain how the Agency applies 

regulations to specific facts. A guidance 

statement does not alter the meaning of 

a regulation. This rulemaking proposes 

to amend regulations that have 

associated guidance statements or 

interpretations. FMCSA would change 

the existing guidance to conform to the 

changes proposed in this NPRM. 

Guidance statements are not legally 

binding in their own right and will not 

be relied on by FMCSA as a separate 

basis for affirmative enforcement action 

or other administrative penalty. 

Conformity with guidance statements is 

voluntary only, and nonconformity will 

not affect rights and obligations under 

existing statutes or regulations. 

Section 391.23 Investigation and 

Inquiries 

Question 2 to § 391.23 8 would be 

revised as stated immediately below to 

reflect that inquiries for MVRs must be 

made to all ‘‘driver’s licensing 

authorities’’ where the driver holds or 

has held a motor vehicle operator’s 

license or permit, rather than only to 

‘‘States.’’ 

Question 2: May motor carriers use 

third parties to ask driver’s licensing 

authorities for copies of the driving 

record of driver-applicants? 

Guidance: Yes. Driver information 

services or companies acting as the 

motor carrier’s agent may be used to 

contact driver’s licensing authorities. 

However, the motor carrier is 

responsible for ensuring the information 

obtained is accurate. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 80751 

9See https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/registration/ 

commercial-drivers-license/what-extent-mustmotor-carrier-review-drivers-overall and https://

www.fmcsa.dot.gov/registration/commercialdrivers-license/may-motor-carriers-use-thirdparties-ask-state-agencies-0, respectively (accessed 

Nov. 30, 2020). 

Section 391.25 Annual Inquiry and 

Review of Driving Record 

Questions 1 and 3 to § 391.25 9 would 

be revised as stated immediately below 

to reflect that MVRs must be requested 

from all ‘‘driver’s licensing authorities’’ 

where the driver held a CMV operator’s 

license or permit, rather than only 

‘‘States.’’ Question 3 also would be 

revised to improve clarity and correct 

grammatical errors. 

Question 1: To what extent must a 

motor carrier review a driver’s overall 

driving record to comply with the 

requirements of § 391.25? 

Guidance: The motor carrier must 

consider as much information about the 

driver’s experience as is reasonably 

available. This would include all known 

violations, whether they are part of an 

official record maintained by a driver’s 

licensing authority, as well as any other 

information that would indicate the 

driver has shown a lack of due regard 

for the safety of the public. Violations of 

traffic and criminal laws, as well as the 

driver’s involvement in motor vehicle 

accidents, are such indications and 

must be considered. A violation of size 

and weight laws should be considered. 

Question 3: May motor carriers use 

third parties to ask driver’s licensing 

authorities for copies of driving records 

to be examined during the carrier’s 

annual review of each driver’s record? 

Guidance: Yes. An examination of the 

official driving record maintained by the 

driver’s licensing authority is not 

required during the annual review. 

Motor carriers may use third-party 

agents, such as driver information 

services or companies, to contact 

driver’s licensing authorities and obtain 

copies of driving records. However, the 

motor carrier is responsible for ensuring 

the information is accurate. 

Section 391.27 Record of Violations 

Because FMCSA proposes to rescind 

§ 391.27, the guidance to that section 

also would be rescinded. 

IX. Regulatory Analyses 

A. Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 

(Regulatory Planning and Review), E.O. 

13563 (Improving Regulation and 

Regulatory Review), and DOT 

Regulations 

Under section 3(f) of E.O. 12866 (58 

FR 51735, Oct. 4, 1993), Regulatory 

Planning and Review, as supplemented 

by E.O. 13563 (76 FR 3821, Jan. 21, 

2011), Improving Regulation and 

Regulatory Review, this rule does not 

require an assessment of potential costs 

and benefits under section 6(a)(3) of 

E.O. 12866. Accordingly, OMB has not 

reviewed it under that Order. In 

addition, this rule is not significant 

within the meaning of DOT regulations 

(84 FR 71714, Dec. 27, 2019). 

As described above, the purpose of 

this proposed regulatory action is to 

remove § 391.27 and the requirement for 

drivers to provide their motor carrier 

employers a list of convictions for traffic 

violations (other than parking) that 

occurred during the previous 12 months 

or a certification of no violations. The 

proposed rule would retain the 

requirement in § 391.25 that motor 

carriers make an annual inquiry to 

obtain a driver’s MVR. Because § 391.25 

is limited to inquiries for drivers 

licensed by a State, the proposed rule 

would modify § 391.25 to require motor 

carriers to request a driver’s MVR from 

each licensing authority that issued the 

driver a license. To maintain 

consistency within part 391 with 

respect to requests for MVRs, FMCSA 

proposes conforming changes to 

§ 391.23, which requires motor carriers 

to request MVRs for the 3 years 

preceding the date of employment when 

hiring a driver. These changes would 

require motor carriers to request the 

MVR equivalent from Canadian and 

Mexican driver’s licensing authorities. 

A change also would be made in 

§ 391.21 to require each driver to 

provide on the employment application 

the issuing driver’s licensing authority 

of each unexpired CMV operator’s 

license or permit that has been issued to 

the driver so motor carriers could make 

the required inquiries under § 391.23. 

The proposed changes would not add 

new reporting or recordkeeping costs. 

The proposed elimination of § 391.27 

would result in cost savings to drivers 

because they would no longer spend 

time completing a list of convictions for 

traffic violations. It would also result in 

cost savings to motor carriers because 

they would no longer have to file the 

lists in driver qualification files. The 

Agency estimates that the proposed rule 

would result in cost savings to CMV 

drivers and motor carriers of $40.1 

million over 10 years on an 

undiscounted basis, and $28.1 million 

discounted at 7 percent over the 10-year 

analysis period. Expressed on an 

annualized basis, this equates to cost 

savings of $4.0 million at a 7 percent 

discount rate. 

The proposed changes to §§ 391.21, 

391.23, and 391.25 would not increase 

reporting or recordkeeping costs. The 

proposed rule would institute new 

requirements under the FMCSRs for 

motor carriers to request MVRs for their 

drivers operating in the United States 

who are licensed by a foreign authority 

rather than by a State. However, the 

current OMB-approved information 

collection for §§ 391.23 and 391.25 

titled ‘‘Driver Qualification Files,’’ OMB 

Control Number 2126–0004, already 

includes reporting and recordkeeping 

costs and burdens incurred by motor 

carriers to request MVRs for such 

drivers. As explained below, applicable 

motor carriers would not incur an 

increase in costs or burdens as a result 

of this proposed rule. Nonetheless, 

FMCSA retains these costs and burdens 

under OMB Control Number 2126–0004 

to treat all motor carriers consistently 

and for administrative convenience. 

Similarly, the current OMB-approved 

information collection for § 391.21 

already includes reporting and 

recordkeeping costs incurred by drivers 

to prepare and submit employment 

applications. 

All motor carriers authorized to 

operate in the United States are required 

to file with FMCSA Form MCS–150 

(Motor Carrier Identification Report), 

Form MCS–150B (Motor Carrier 

Identification Report and Hazardous 

Material Permit Application), or Form 

MCSA–1. These registration forms 

require motor carriers to report the 

number of drivers they employ and are 

the source of driver counts in MCMIS, 

which counts the total number of 

drivers reported by both domestic and 

foreign motor carriers. In turn, FMCSA 

uses the MCMIS driver population data 

published in FMCSA’s annual Pocket 

Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics, 

which includes drivers employed by 

Canadian and Mexican motor carriers, 

to calculate the burden associated with 

information collections and paperwork. 

Thus, requests for MVR equivalents for 

drivers holding licenses issued by 

Canadian or Mexican licensing 

authorities have already been included 

in the OMB-approved information 

collections for §§ 391.23 and 391.25. In 

addition, the time for all drivers to 

prepare and submit employment 

applications has already been included 

in the information collection for 

§ 391.21. 

This change under the FMCSRs to 

require inquiries to Canadian and 

Mexican driver’s licensing authorities 

would have minimal, if any, impact, 

because relatively few drivers operate in 

the United States who are licensed by a 

foreign authority rather than by a State. 

Of the 6.2 million CMV drivers reported 

in FMCSA’s 2018 Pocket Guide to Large 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
80752 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

10Available at https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/sites/ 

fmcsa.dot.gov/files/docs/safety/data-and-statistics/ 

413361/fmcsa-pocket-guide-2018-final-508- 

compliant.pdf (accessed Apr. 22, 2019). 

11The sum of the number of Canadian and 

Mexican drivers as a percentage of the total number 

of drivers in Exhibit 1–10 does not equal 2.5 

percent due to rounding. 

12Canadian National Safety Code (NSC) Standard 

15, Facility Audit, establishes the minimum 

requirements for Provincial and Territorial 

licensing authorities’ regulations that specify the 

content of driver abstracts. Standard 15, Appendix 

A, Section 3 requires motor carriers to make 

available for a Facility Audit a driver abstract 

issued within the last 12 months. The abstract must 

include name, date of birth and license number, 

current license class and status (e.g., active or 

suspended), driver qualifications, and 2-year 

histories of traffic and criminal driving offenses, 

convictions, and accidents. NSC Standard 15 is 

available at https://ccmta.ca/en/national-safetycode/national-safety-code-nsc#NSC (accessed Apr. 

17, 2019). Similarly, the ‘‘Reglamento del Servicio 

de Medicina Preventiva en el Transporte’’ 

(Transportation Preventive Medicine Service 

Regulations) in Chapter VI (Of Solitary 

Responsibility of the Concessionaire or Permittee, 

or Airline Operator), Article 39 provides generally 

that motor carriers are to keep updated individual 

files for their employees that include records 

related to accidents or incidents of federal 

transport. The regulations are available at: http://

www.sct.gob.mx/fileadmin/DireccionesGrales/ 

DGPMPT/Documentos/normatividad/Reglamento_

DGPMPT_10-05-2013.pdf (accessed June 3, 2019). 

13Available at https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/sites/ 

fmcsa.dot.gov/files/docs/safety/data-and-statistics/ 

413361/fmcsa-pocket-guide-2018-final-508- 

compliant.pdf (accessed Apr. 22, 2019). 

Truck and Bus Statistics,10 the Agency 

estimates that at most only 2.0 percent 

are employed by Canadian motor 

carriers operating in the United States 

and 0.5 percent are employed by 

Mexican motor carriers operating in the 

United States. The combined total 2.4 

percent represents 139,744 drivers 

reported as being employed by 

Canadian and Mexican motor carriers.11

Canadian and Mexican motor carriers 

are already required by their applicable 

safety codes to request the equivalent of 

MVRs for their drivers from their 

licensing authorities.12 Accordingly, 

FMCSA has determined that the 

proposed changes to §§ 391.23 and 

391.25 to require inquiries to Canadian 

and Mexican driver’s licensing 

authorities for the equivalent of MVRs 

would not impose any new 

recordkeeping or reporting costs or 

burdens because Canadian and Mexican 

motor carriers are already making the 

inquiries. Though Canadian and 

Mexican motor carriers would not be 

required to change their current 

business practices and would not have 

any new costs or burdens imposed as a 

result of the proposed rule, FMCSA 

continues to include the costs and 

burdens for requesting MVR equivalents 

in the current OMB-approved 

information collections to treat all 

carriers consistently and for 

administrative convenience. 

The proposed rule would not increase 

costs to motor carriers because of fees 

paid to Canadian and Mexican driver’s 

licensing authorities to request MVR 

equivalents. The supporting statement 

(OMB Control Number 2126–0004) for 

the ‘‘Driver Qualification Files’’ 

information collection, available in the 

docket, provides that SDLAs assess 

motor carriers a $10 fee to obtain MVRs 

consisting of a $9 median fee charged by 

51 SDLAs, plus a $1 third-party 

processing fee. FMCSA has surveyed 

fees charged by driver’s licensing 

authorities and third-party processing 

companies in Canada. FMCSA has 

determined that the median fee charged 

for a MVR equivalent in Canada is also 

$9, when adjusted to United States 

dollars, and that third-party processing 

fees are consistent as well. There is no 

fee to request MVR equivalents in 

Mexico. However, fees are considered a 

transfer payment. Thus, the requirement 

that motor carriers obtain MVRs from 

Canadian and Mexican driver’s 

licensing authorities are transfer 

payments so they are not included in 

the benefit-cost analysis. They are 

included in the Paperwork Reduction 

Act supporting statement prepared for 

the proposed rule. 

For all the above reasons, FMCSA has 

determined that the proposed changes 

to §§ 391.23 and 391.25 to require 

inquiries to Canadian and Mexican 

driver’s licensing authorities to request 

MVR equivalents would not impose any 

new reporting or recordkeeping costs. 

Scope and Key Inputs to the Analysis 

The baseline for this analysis is the 

monetized value of motor carriers’ and 

drivers’ time spent meeting the annual 

reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements of § 391.27. The estimated 

cost of this information collection has 

been approved by OMB in an 

information collection request (ICR) 

titled ‘‘Driver Qualification Files,’’ OMB 

Control Number 2126–0004, which 

expires April 30, 2023. The Agency 

estimated the 3-year average burden 

associated with § 391.27 at 0.12 million 

hours and $3.9 million. The baseline in 

this analysis extends the supporting 

statement projections an additional 7 

years. That is, it estimates the costs that 

drivers and motor carriers would incur 

over the 10-year period 2021 through 

2030, in the absence of the proposed 

rule. 

Driver Population Projection 

The driver population is based on a 

0.595 percent annual growth rate 

applied to the 6.2 million driver 

population as of December 29, 2017, 

reported in FMCSA’s 2018 Pocket Guide 

to Large Truck and Bus Statistics.13 The 

growth rate is a weighted average of the 

annual compound growth rates 

estimated using the United States 

Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS) Employment Projections 

Program point projections for the four 

categories of commercial vehicle drivers 

for 2016 and 2026. 

Table 1 shows the calculation of the 

growth rate and the calculation of the 

weighted average compound growth 

rate. 

TABLE 1—POPULATION GROWTH RATE

BLS standard occupation 

2016 Total 

employment 

(thousands) 

2016 

Employment 

percentage 

of total 

2026 Total 

employment 

(thousands) 

Compound 

annual growth 

rate in 

employment 

(2016–2026) 

Weighted 

average 

compound 

growth rate 

(percent) 

A B = A/3,512 C D = ((C/A) ∧

(1/10))–1 

E = B × D 

Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers ................................. 1,871 53.3 1,980 0.568 0.303 

Light truck or delivery services drivers ................................ 953 27.1 953 0.634 0.17 

Bus drivers, school or special client .................................... 508 14.5 508 0.525 0.08 

Bus drivers, transit and intercity .......................................... 179 5.1 179 0.864 0.04 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 80753 

14American Transportation Research Institute, 

ATRI Analysis of the Operational Cost of Trucking: 

2018 Update. Available at http://atri-online.org/wp- content/uploads/2018/10/ATRI-Operational-Costsof-Trucking-2018.pdf (accessed Apr. 22, 2019). 

TABLE 1—POPULATION GROWTH RATE—Continued 

BLS standard occupation 

2016 Total 

employment 

(thousands) 

2016 

Employment 

percentage 

of total 

2026 Total 

employment 

(thousands) 

Compound 

annual growth 

rate in 

employment 

(2016–2026) 

Weighted 

average 

compound 

growth rate 

(percent) 

A B = A/3,512 C D = ((C/A) ∧

(1/10))–1 

E = B × D 

3,512 100 3,620 ........................ 0.595 

Note: The 0.595 percent weighted average growth rate does not equal the sum of the components due to rounding. 

Table 2 shows the extrapolation of the 

driver population from the 6.2 million 

driver population on December 29, 

2017, at a 0.595 percent average annual 

growth. The 10-year projection period 

used in this analysis begins in 2021 and 

ends in 2030. This 10-year population 

projection is the base from which the 

Agency estimates the number of drivers, 

which in the absence of the proposed 

rule, would be required to provide 

motor carriers an annual list of 

violations. 

TABLE 2—DRIVER POPULATION 2021– 

2030 

Year Number of 

drivers 

2017 ...................................... 6,200,000 

2018 ...................................... 6,236,870 

2019 ...................................... 6,273,960 

2020 ...................................... 6,311,270 

2021 ...................................... 6,348,802 

2022 ...................................... 6,386,558 

2023 ...................................... 6,424,538 

2024 ...................................... 6,462,743 

TABLE 2—DRIVER POPULATION 2021– 

2030—Continued 

Year Number of 

drivers 

2025 ...................................... 6,501,176 

2026 ...................................... 6,539,838 

2027 ...................................... 6,578,729 

2028 ...................................... 6,617,852 

2029 ...................................... 6,657,207 

2030 ...................................... 6,696,796 

The number of drivers who would no 

longer be required to submit an annual 

list of convictions for traffic violations 

is estimated as the difference between 

the projections of annual driver 

population and annual job openings. 

The number of job openings is estimated 

by applying a 71.6 percent average 

annual driver turnover rate to the 

annual driver population shown in 

Table 2. The turnover rate is derived 

from turnover rates reported for three 

categories of motor carriers by the 

American Trucking Associations, which 

are over-the-road carriers (OTR) at 98 

percent, truckload carriers (TL) at 72 

percent, and less-than-truckload carriers 

(LTL) at 14 percent. The OTR category 

is made up predominantly of CMV 

drivers transporting general freight on 

behalf of for-hire motor carriers. The TL 

category is made up predominantly of 

CMV drivers transporting specialized 

freight on behalf of for-hire motor 

carriers. The LTL category is made up 

of CMV drivers transporting the 

property of their motor carrier and 

drivers engaged in specialized 

operations analogous to LTL operations. 

The individual turnover rates are 

weighted by the relative shares of the 

driver population distributed among the 

three categories of motor carriers, which 

are 52 percent for OTR drivers, 24 

percent for TL drivers, and 24 percent 

for LTL drivers.14 As shown in Table 3, 

the sum of the product of the turnover 

rates and percentage of drivers by 

category results in a 71.6 percent 

weighted average turnover rate. 

TABLE 3—WEIGHTED AVERAGE TURNOVER RATE

Driver type 

Turnover 

rate 

(percent) 

Percent of 

drivers in 

driver type 

category 

Over-the-Road ......................................................................................................................................................... 98 52 

Truckload ................................................................................................................................................................. 72 24 

Less-than-Truckload Drivers .................................................................................................................................... 14 24 

Weighted Average Turnover Rate .................................................................................................................... ........................ 71.6 

Note: The weighted average turnover rate is calculated as: (98% × 52%) + (72% × 24%) + (14% × 24%) = 71.6%. 

Table 4 shows the annual projections 

of the number of drivers subject to the 

reporting requirements of § 391.27 who 

would no longer have to submit a list of 

convictions for traffic violations if 

§ 391.27 is rescinded. The projections 

cover the 10-year period ending in 2030. 

Drivers who have been recently hired 

are not subject to the annual reporting 

requirements of § 391.27. The hiring 

process includes similar reporting 

requirements for which the information 

collection burden is accounted for 

under a different regulation. 


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15U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 

Statistics, Table 10: Employer costs per hour 

worked for employee compensation and costs as a 

percent of total compensation: Private industry 

workers, by industry group, June 2018. Available at 

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ecec 

(accessed Apr. 23, 2019). 

16Berwick, Farooq. Truck Costing Model for 

Transportation Managers, North Dakota State 

University, Upper Great Plains Transportation 

Institute, 2003. Appendix A, pp. 42–47. This 

estimate is based on an average cost of $0.107 per 

mile of CMV operation for management and 

overhead, and $0.39 per mile for labor. The ratio 

of these values results in an estimated 27.4 percent 

overhead rate (27.4 percent = $0.107 ÷ $0.39). 

Available at: https://www.ugpti.org/resources/ 

reports/details.php?id=475 (accessed Apr. 23, 

2019). 

TABLE 4—DRIVER POPULATION AFFECTED BY PROPOSED RULE

Year Driver 

population 

Number of 

job openings 

Driver 

population 

subject to 

§ 391.27 

A = From 

Table 2 

B = A × 71.6% C = A¥B 

2021 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,348,802 4,545,743 1,803,060 

2022 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,386,558 4,572,775 1,813,782 

2023 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,424,538 4,599,969 1,824,569 

2024 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,462,743 4,627,324 1,835,419 

2025 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,501,176 4,654,842 1,846,334 

2026 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,539,838 4,682,524 1,857,314 

2027 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,578,729 4,710,370 1,868,359 

2028 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,617,852 4,738,382 1,879,470 

2029 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,657,207 4,766,560 1,890,647 

2030 ............................................................................................................................................. 6,696,796 4,794,906 1,901,890 

Wage Rates 

FMCSA evaluated the opportunity 

cost of time for drivers using a rounded 

representative driver wage rate of $36 

per hour. This hourly cost represents 

the value of driver time that, in the 

absence of the proposed rule, he or she 

would spend completing a list of 

convictions for traffic violations, but 

would now be available to perform 

other tasks. Table 5 summarizes the 

estimation of a weighted average hourly 

wage of $36.25 for drivers. The 

weighted average hourly wage is 

derived from the BLS Occupational 

Employment Statistics (OES) estimates 

of the median wages of four categories 

of drivers assigned to BLS Standard 

Occupation Codes (SOC), shown in 

Table 5. The median hourly wages for 

each driver SOC are increased to 

account for fringe benefits and motor 

carrier overhead as explained below. 

The hourly wages are weighted based on 

the population of drivers for each SOC 

relative to the total population as shown 

by the percentages in Table 5, Column 

B. 

BLS does not publish data on fringe 

benefits for specific occupations, but it 

does publish fringe benefit data for the 

broad industry groups in its quarterly 

Employer Costs for Employee 

Compensation (ECEC) news releases. 

This analysis uses the ECEC data to 

estimate a fringe benefit rate based on 

the hourly wage for the ‘‘transportation 

and warehousing’’ sector average hourly 

wage ($25.80) and average hourly 

benefits ($14.69) for the ‘‘transportation 

and warehousing’’ sector.15 The ratio of 

the two values results in a 56.9 percent 

fringe benefit rate (56.9 percent = $14.69 

per hour ÷ $25.80 percent) that is added 

to the average hourly wage. The hourly 

wage, including fringe benefits, is 

further increased by 27.4 percent to 

account for motor carriers’ overhead.16

TABLE 5—DRIVER HOURLY WAGE INCLUDING FRINGE BENEFITS AND MOTOR CARRIER OVERHEAD

Standard occupation 

title and code Total drivers % of total drivers 

Median hourly 

base wage 

Weighted 

hourly wage 

Fringe 

benefits rate 

(percent) 

Overhead 

rate 

(percent) 

Weighted 

average 

hourly cost 

A = from BLS 

OES Data 

B = A/Sum of 

Column A 

C = from BLS 

OES Data 

D = B × C E = from BLS 

ECEC Data 

F G = D × 

(1+0.569) × 

(1+0.274) 

Heavy and Tractor 

Trailer Drivers (53– 

3032) ........................ 1,748,140 52.8 $20.42 $10.79 56.9 27.4 $21.57 

Light truck and delivery 

Service Drivers (53– 

3033) ........................ 877,670 26.5 15.12 4.01 56.9 27.4 8.02 

Bus drivers, school and 

or special client (53– 

3022) ........................ 176,140 5.3 19.61 1.04 56.9 27.4 2.09 

Bus drivers, Transit and 

Intercity (53–3021) ... 507,340 15.3 14.93 2.29 56.9 27.4 4.58 

Weighted Average 

Driver Wage ...... ........................ ........................ ........................ ........................ ........................ ........................ 36.25 

Notes: 

(a) The number of drivers is the number of respondents by SOC included in the BLS survey. The coverage and scope of the survey is described at https://www.bls.gov/oes/oes_emp.htm#scope (accessed May 12, 2019). 


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(b) The $36.25 hourly weighted average wage does not equal the sum of the components due to rounding. 

Section 391.27 requires motor carriers 

to incur labor costs to file drivers’ lists 

of convictions for traffic violations in 

their driver qualification files. The 

burden hours associated with this task 

are monetized using an hourly wage for 

a file clerk adjusted for fringe benefits 

and motor carrier overhead. The BLS 

median wage for a file clerk is $14.48. 

The hourly wage is increased for fringe 

benefits and motor carrier overhead, 

which results in a $28.96 wage, rounded 

to $29 ($28.96 = $14.48 × (1+56.9%) × 

(1+27.4%)). 

Costs 

The proposed rule would result in 

cost savings to drivers and motor 

carriers. Drivers’ cost savings would be 

the result of no longer having to prepare 

an annual list of convictions for traffic 

violations for their employers. Motor 

carriers would realize cost savings from 

no longer having to file the lists in 

driver qualification files. The Agency 

estimates that drivers and motor carriers 

would each spend 2 minutes on their 

respective tasks. 

Table 6 shows the estimated driver 

cost savings resulting from the removal 

of § 391.27. Over the 10-year projection 

period, driver cost savings are estimated 

at $22.2 million. At a 7 percent discount 

rate, driver cost savings are estimated at 

$15.6 million and annualized cost 

savings are estimated at $2.2 million. 

TABLE 6—DRIVER COST SAVINGS

Driver 

population 

providing 

lists of 

violations 

Driver 

burden 

hours 

(million) 

Driver costs 

(2017$ million) 

Driver 

cost at 

7% discount 

rate 

($ million) 

A B = A × (2 

Minutes/60) 

C = B × $36 D 

2021 ................................................................................................................. 1,803,060 0.060 ($2.2) ($2.0) 

2022 ................................................................................................................. 1,813,782 0.060 (2.2) (1.9) 

2023 ................................................................................................................. 1,824,569 0.061 (2.2) (1.8) 

2024 ................................................................................................................. 1,835,419 0.061 (2.2) (1.7) 

2025 ................................................................................................................. 1,846,334 0.062 (2.2) (1.6) 

2026 ................................................................................................................. 1,857,314 0.062 (2.2) (1.5) 

2027 ................................................................................................................. 1,868,359 0.062 (2.2) (1.4) 

2028 ................................................................................................................. 1,879,470 0.063 (2.3) (1.3) 

2029 ................................................................................................................. 1,890,647 0.063 (2.3) (1.2) 

2030 ................................................................................................................. 1,901,890 0.063 (2.3) (1.2) 

Total .......................................................................................................... ........................ 0.62 (22.2) (15.6) 

Annualized ....................................................................................................... ........................ ........................ ........................ (2.2) 

Notes: 

(a) Total cost values may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding (the totals shown in this column are the rounded sum of 

unrounded components). 

(b) Values shown in parentheses are negative values (i.e., less than zero), and represent a decrease in cost or a cost savings. 

Table 7 summarizes motor carrier 

projected cost savings. Over the 10-year 

projection period, motor carrier cost 

savings are estimated at $17.9 million. 

At a 7 percent discount rate, motor 

carrier cost savings are estimated at 

$12.5 million and annualized cost 

savings at $1.8 million. 

TABLE 7—MOTOR CARRIER COST SAVINGS

Number of 

lists of 

violations 

to file 

Motor 

carrier 

burden hours 

(million) 

Motor 

carrier 

costs 

(2017$ million) 

Motor 

carrier 

cost at 7% 

discount rate 

($ million) 

A B = A × (2 

Minutes/60) 

C = B × $29 D 

2021 ................................................................................................................. 1,803,060 0.060 ($1.7) ($1.6) 

2022 ................................................................................................................. 1,813,782 0.060 (1.8) (1.5) 

2023 ................................................................................................................. 1,824,569 0.061 (1.8) (1.4) 

2024 ................................................................................................................. 1,835,419 0.061 (1.8) (1.4) 

2025 ................................................................................................................. 1,846,334 0.062 (1.8) (1.3) 

2026 ................................................................................................................. 1,857,314 0.062 (1.8) (1.2) 

2027 ................................................................................................................. 1,868,359 0.062 (1.8) (1.1) 

2028 ................................................................................................................. 1,879,470 0.063 (1.8) (1.1) 

2029 ................................................................................................................. 1,890,647 0.063 (1.8) (1.0) 

2030 ................................................................................................................. 1,901,890 0.063 (1.8) (0.9) 

Total .......................................................................................................... ........................ 0.62 (17.9) (12.5) 


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80756 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

17Available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/ 

whitehouse.gov/files/omb/memoranda/2017/M-17- 

21-OMB.pdf (accessed June 26, 2019). 

18A ‘‘major rule’’ means any rule that the 

Administrator of Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs at the Office of Management and 

Budget finds has resulted in or is likely to result 

in (a) an annual effect on the economy of $100 

million or more; (b) a major increase in costs or 

prices for consumers, individual industries, Federal 

agencies, State agencies, local government agencies, 

or geographic regions; or (c) significant adverse 

effects on competition, employment, investment, 

productivity, innovation, or on the ability of United 

States-based enterprises to compete with foreignbased enterprises in domestic and export markets 

(5 U.S.C. 804(2)). 

TABLE 7—MOTOR CARRIER COST SAVINGS—Continued 

Number of 

lists of 

violations 

to file 

Motor 

carrier 

burden hours 

(million) 

Motor 

carrier 

costs 

(2017$ million) 

Motor 

carrier 

cost at 7% 

discount rate 

($ million) 

A B = A × (2 

Minutes/60) 

C = B × $29 D 

Annualized ....................................................................................................... ........................ ........................ ........................ (1.8) 

Notes: 

(a) Total cost values may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding (the totals shown in this column are the rounded sum of 

unrounded components). 

(b) Values shown in parentheses are negative values (i.e., less than zero), and represent a decrease in cost or a cost savings. 

The estimated cost savings resulting 

from the proposal to rescind § 391.27 

total $40.1 million over the 10-year 

projection period. At a 7 percent 

discount rate, the estimated total cost 

savings are $28.1 million and the 

annualized cost savings are $4.0 

million. 

Benefits 

This proposed rule would allow 

drivers and motor carriers to more 

efficiently allocate their time. As 

discussed above, eliminating the 

requirement for drivers to provide a list 

of their convictions for traffic violations 

on an annual basis would reduce the 

paperwork burden and result in cost 

savings for drivers and motor carriers. 

FMCSA does not expect this proposed 

rule to affect safety negatively. Motor 

carriers would still be made aware of 

their employees’ convictions for driving 

violations via the annual MVR check 

required in § 391.25. 

B. E.O. 13771 (Reducing Regulation and 

Controlling Regulatory Costs) 

This proposed rule is expected to 

have total costs less than zero, and, if 

finalized, would qualify as an E.O. 

13771 deregulatory action. The present 

value of the cost savings of this 

proposed rule, measured on an infinite 

time horizon at a 7 percent discount 

rate, expressed in 2016 dollars, and 

discounted to 2021 (the year the 

proposed rule, if finalized, would be 

expected to go into effect and cost 

savings would first be realized), would 

be $57.8 million. On an annualized 

basis, these cost savings would be $4.0 

million. 

For E.O. 13771 accounting, the April 

5, 2017, OMB guidance 17 requires that 

agencies also calculate the costs and 

cost savings discounted to year 2016. In 

accordance with this requirement, the 

present value of the cost savings of this 

rule, measured on an infinite time 

horizon at a 7 percent discount rate, 

expressed in 2016 dollars, and 

discounted to 2016, would be $41.2 

million. On an annualized basis, the 

cost savings would be $2.9 million. 

C. Congressional Review Act 

Pursuant to the Congressional Review 

Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), OIRA 

designated this rule as not a ‘‘major 

rule,’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).18

D. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

(Pub. L. 96–354, 94 Stat. 1164, 

September 19, 1980 (5 U.S.C. 601 et 

seq.)), as amended by the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104–121, 

110 Stat. 857, Mar. 29, 1996), requires 

Federal agencies to consider the impact 

of their regulatory proposals on small 

entities, analyze effective alternatives 

that minimize small entity impacts, and 

make their analyses available for public 

comment. The term ‘‘small entities’’ 

means small businesses and not-forprofit organizations that are 

independently owned and operated and 

are not dominant in their fields, and 

governmental jurisdictions with 

populations under 50,000 (5 U.S.C. 

601). Accordingly, DOT policy requires 

an analysis of the impact of all 

regulations on small entities, and 

mandates that agencies strive to lessen 

any adverse effects on these entities. 

FMCSA is therefore publishing this 

initial regulatory flexibility analysis to 

aid the public in commenting on the 

potential small business impacts of the 

proposals in this NPRM. FMCSA invites 

all interested parties to submit data and 

information regarding the potential 

economic impact that would result from 

adoption of the proposals in this NPRM. 

FMCSA will consider all comments 

received in the public comment process 

when deciding on the final regulatory 

flexibility assessment. 

An initial regulatory flexibility 

analysis must include six components 

(5 U.S.C. 603(b) and (c)). The Agency 

discusses each of the components 

below. 

1. A description of the reasons why 

the action by the agency is being 

considered. 

The Agency is proposing to rescind 

§ 391.27 because the annual list of 

convictions for traffic violations that 

drivers are required to provide motor 

carriers is largely duplicative of 

information reported on drivers’ MVRs 

that motor carriers are required to obtain 

from SDLAs on an annual basis 

pursuant to § 391.25. The Agency finds 

that the information reported on MVRs 

that motor carriers obtain from driver’s 

licensing authorities is sufficient, 

without drivers having to provide an 

annual list of violations. Thus, the 

proposed rule relieves drivers and 

motor carriers of the reporting and 

recordkeeping costs incurred to comply 

with § 391.27, without compromising 

safety. 

Section 391.25 currently applies to all 

motor carriers, domestic and foreign, 

but is limited to inquiries for drivers 

licensed by a State. To ensure motor 

carriers are aware of convictions for 

traffic violations for a driver who is 

licensed by a foreign authority rather 

than by a State, FMCSA proposes to 

amend § 391.25(a) to require that motor 

carriers make an annual inquiry to each 

driver’s licensing authority where a 

driver holds or has held a CMV 

operator’s license or permit. For 

example, any motor carrier that employs 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
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19Though individual CMV drivers are not small 

entities for purposes of the RFA, individual CMV 

drivers who are owner-operators are considered 

small businesses for purposes of the RFA. In 

addition, driver and motor carrier cost savings are 

estimated on a per driver basis using an estimate 

of the total driver population that includes owneroperators. 

20U.S. Census Bureau, 2012 Economic Survey, 

Table EC1248SSSZ4-Summary Statistics by 

Revenue and Size of Firm. Available at https://

factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/ 

productview.xhtml?pid=ECN_2012_US_

48SSSZ4&prodType=table (accessed Apr. 24, 2019). 

21The SBA regulation defining small business 

size standards by North American Industry 

Classification System codes is set forth in 13 CFR 

121.201. 

22Commuter rail, public transit systems, taxi, 

limousine, and special needs transportation that are 

included in Subsector 485 are excluded from the 

analysis. 

a driver who holds a Canadian or 

Mexican license to operate a CMV and 

is authorized to operate in the United 

States would be required to request the 

equivalent of an MVR from the 

applicable Canadian or Mexican 

licensing authority where the driver is 

licensed. The proposed rule would 

make conforming changes to §§ 391.21 

and 391.23 with respect to the hiringrelated inquiries for MVRs motor 

carriers are required to perform. 

2. A succinct statement of the 

objectives of, and legal basis for, the 

proposed rule. 

The objective of this rulemaking is to 

reduce redundant regulatory 

requirements where applicable. 

The statutory authority for §§ 391.21, 

391.23, 391.25, and 391.27 in title 49 of 

the CFR derives from the Motor Carrier 

Act of 1935 and the Motor Carrier Safety 

Act of 1984, both as amended. In 

addition, the Secretary has discretionary 

authority under 49 U.S.C. 31133(a)(8) to 

prescribe (and thus to remove) 

recordkeeping and reporting 

requirements. This deregulatory action, 

to eliminate § 391.27, rests on that 

authority. This statutory authority is 

delegated to FMCSA by § 1.87. A full 

explanation of the legal basis for this 

rulemaking is set forth in Section III. 

3. A description, and, where feasible, 

an estimate of the number of small 

entities to which the proposed rule will 

apply. 

‘‘Small entity’’ is defined in 5 U.S.C. 

601(6) as having the same meaning as 

the terms ‘‘small business’’ in paragraph 

(3), ‘‘small organization’’ in paragraph 

(4), and ‘‘small governmental 

jurisdiction’’ in paragraph (5). Section 

601(3) defines a small business as a 

‘‘small business concern’’ under section 

3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

632(a)), which means a business that is 

independently owned and operated and 

is not dominant in its field of operation. 

Section 601(4) defines small 

organizations as not-for-profit 

enterprises that are independently 

owned and operated, and are not 

dominant in their fields of operation. 

Additionally, section 601(5) defines 

small governmental jurisdictions as 

governments of cities, counties, towns, 

townships, villages, school districts, or 

special districts with populations of less 

than 50,000. 

This proposed rule would affect 

interstate CMV drivers and interstate 

motor carriers. CMV drivers, however, 

do not meet the definition of a small 

entity in section 601 of the RFA. 

Specifically, CMV drivers are 

considered neither a small business 

under section 601(3) of the RFA, nor a 

small organization under section 601(4) 

of the RFA.19

FMCSA used data from the 2012 

Economic Census to determine the 

percentage of motor carriers with annual 

revenue at or below the Small Business 

Administration’s (SBA) thresholds.20

The SBA thresholds are used to classify 

a business as a small business for 

purposes of determining eligibility to 

participate in SBA and Federal 

contracting programs.21 The Economic 

Census sums the number of firms 

classified according to their North 

American Industry Classification 

System (NAICS) code by ranges of 

annual revenue. The ranges with the 

high end closest to the SBA thresholds 

was used to determine the percentage of 

trucking firms and passenger carriers 

that meet the definition of an SBA small 

business. FMCSA used the Economic 

Census as the basis for estimating the 

number of small entities affected by the 

proposed rule. As discussed below, the 

Agency estimates that 98.7 percent of 

trucking firms and 95.2 percent of 

passenger carriers are classified as small 

businesses. 

The Economic Census and the SBA 

aggregate revenue data for the Truck 

Transportation industry under the 

NAICS Code 484. The SBA threshold for 

NAICS Code 484 is $30 million. For 

purposes of determining the percentage 

of trucking firms with annual revenue 

less than or equal to $30 million, the 

Agency considered the annual revenue 

for all truck transportation firms 

reported in the Economic Survey under 

NAICS Code 484. The Economic Survey 

revenue range closest to the SBA $30.0 

million threshold includes all truck 

transportation firms with annual 

revenue ranging from $10.0 million to 

$24.9 million. The total number of truck 

transportation firms within the 8 ranges 

of annual revenue less than or equal to 

$30.0 million accounts for 98.7 percent 

of survey respondents. The Agency 

finds that this 98.7 percent is a 

reasonable proxy for the number of 

trucking firms with annual revenue 

equal to or less than the $30.0 million 

SBA threshold. 

The Agency used the same 

methodology to determine the 

percentage of passenger carriers that 

qualify as an SBA small business. The 

SBA threshold for Transit and Ground 

Transportation firms (NAICS Code 485) 

is $16.5 million. For purposes of 

determining the percentage of passenger 

carriers with annual revenue less than 

or equal to $16.5 million, the Agency 

considered the number of passenger 

carriers in three NAICS Code subsectors: 

Charter Bus; Interurban Transportation 

and Rural Transportation; and School 

and Employee Transportation 

subsectors.22 The Economic Census 

revenue range closest to the SBA $16.5 

million threshold includes passenger 

carriers with revenue ranging from $5 

million to $9.9 million. Passenger 

carriers with revenue less than or equal 

to $9.9 million account for 95.2 percent 

of survey respondents within the three 

subsectors. Thus, the Agency finds that 

95.2 percent of passenger carriers with 

revenue less than or equal to $9.9 

million is approximately the same 

percentage of those with annual revenue 

less than the $16.5 million SBA 

threshold. 

4. A description of the projected 

reporting, recordkeeping, and other 

compliance requirements of the 

proposed rule, including an estimate of 

the classes of small entities that will be 

subject to the requirement and the types 

of professional skills necessary for 

preparation of the report or record. 

By rescinding § 391.27, the proposed 

rule would eliminate reporting and 

recordkeeping costs incurred by drivers 

and motor carriers. For a discussion of 

the paperwork burden associated with 

the proposed rule, see Section IX.F., 

below. CMV drivers would no longer be 

required to provide their employer an 

annual list of convictions for traffic 

violations. All motor carriers would be 

relieved from the recordkeeping cost of 

filing the lists in driver qualification 

files. 

5. An identification, to the extent 

practicable, of all relevant Federal rules 

that may duplicate, overlap, or conflict 

with the proposed rule. 

The Agency proposes to rescind 

§ 391.27 because it duplicates 

information regarding drivers’ 

convictions for traffic violations that is 

reported on MVRs that motor carriers 

are required to request from SDLAs 

annually pursuant to § 391.25. Section 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
80758 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

23Though Mexican motor carriers do not pay a 

fee to obtain MVR equivalents, FMCSA continues 

to include the cost for consistency and 

administrative convenience. 

391.25, as revised, would require motor 

carriers to request MVRs annually from 

every licensing authority where a driver 

holds or has held a CMV operator’s 

license or permit in the past year. In 

addition, a conforming change would be 

made to § 391.23(a) to require motor 

carriers to request MVRs from all 

driver’s licensing authorities when 

hiring new drivers. 

6. A description of any significant 

alternatives to the proposed rule which 

accomplish the stated objectives of 

applicable statutes and which minimize 

any significant economic impact of the 

proposed rule on small entities. 

There is no significant economic 

impact on small entities because of the 

proposed rule. FMCSA did not identify 

any significant alternatives to the 

proposed rule that would result in 

equivalent cost savings to small entities, 

as compared to those resulting from the 

elimination of § 391.27. 

E. Assistance for Small Entities 

In accordance with section 213(a) of 

the Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 

FMCSA wants to assist small entities in 

understanding this proposed rule so that 

they can better evaluate its effects on 

themselves and participate in the 

rulemaking initiative. If the proposed 

rule would affect your small business, 

organization, or governmental 

jurisdiction and you have questions 

concerning its provisions or options for 

compliance, please consult the person 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT. 

Small businesses may send comments 

on the actions of Federal employees 

who enforce or otherwise determine 

compliance with Federal regulations to 

the SBA’s Small Business and 

Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement 

Ombudsman and the Regional Small 

Business Regulatory Fairness Boards. 

The Ombudsman evaluates these 

actions annually and rates each agency’s 

responsiveness to small business. If you 

wish to comment on actions by 

employees of FMCSA, call 1–888–REG– 

FAIR (1–888–734–3247). DOT has a 

policy regarding the rights of small 

entities to regulatory enforcement 

fairness and an explicit policy against 

retaliation for exercising these rights. 

F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531–1538) requires 

Federal agencies to assess the effects of 

their discretionary regulatory actions. In 

particular, the Act addresses actions 

that may result in the expenditure by a 

State, local, or tribal government, in the 

aggregate, or by the private sector of 

$168 million (which is the value 

equivalent of $100,000,000 in 1995, 

adjusted for inflation to 2019 levels) or 

more in any 1 year. Though this 

proposed rule would not result in such 

an expenditure, the Agency does 

discuss the effects of this rule elsewhere 

in this preamble. 

G. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501–3520) requires that an 

agency consider the impact of 

paperwork and other information 

collection burdens imposed on the 

public. Section 1320.8(b)(3)(vi) of Title 

5 of the CFR prohibits an agency from 

collecting or sponsoring an information 

collection, as well as imposing an 

information collection requirement, 

unless the collection vehicle displays a 

valid OMB control number. This 

proposed rule would amend the existing 

information collection titled ‘‘Driver 

Qualification Files,’’ OMB Control 

Number 2126–0004, which expires 

April 20, 2023. In accordance with 44 

U.S.C. 3507(d), FMCSA will submit the 

proposed information collection 

amendments to OMB for its approval. 

This proposed rule would eliminate 

the information collections required by 

§ 391.27. Under § 391.27, a driver 

operating a CMV must complete a list of 

convictions for traffic violations and 

submit the list to his or her employer on 

an annual basis. When a driver does not 

have any violations to report, the driver 

is required to furnish a certification to 

that effect. The motor carrier must file 

the list of violations or certification of 

no violations in the driver’s 

qualification file. These requirements 

are largely duplicative of the 

requirements in § 391.25 that motor 

carriers make an annual inquiry to 

SDLAs to request a driver’s MVR and 

file the MVR in the driver’s qualification 

file. 

Because § 391.25 is currently limited 

to inquiries for drivers licensed by a 

State, the proposed rule would modify 

§ 391.25 to require motor carriers to 

request a driver’s MVR from each 

licensing authority that issued the 

driver a license. This change would 

require motor carriers to request the 

MVR equivalent from Canadian and 

Mexican driver’s licensing authorities. 

To maintain consistency within part 391 

with respect to requests for MVRs, 

FMCSA proposes to make conforming 

changes to § 391.23, which requires 

motor carriers to request MVRs from 

SDLAs for the 3 years preceding the 

date of employment when hiring a 

driver. A change also would be made in 

§ 391.21 to require each driver to 

provide on the employment application 

the issuing driver’s licensing authority, 

instead of State, of each unexpired CMV 

operator’s license or permit that has 

been issued to the driver so motor 

carriers could make the required 

inquiries under § 391.23. 

The proposed changes to §§ 391.21, 

391.23, and 391.25 would not increase 

paperwork burdens. This is because 

MCMIS, the repository for the Agency’s 

driver population data, counts the total 

number of drivers reported by motor 

carriers, both foreign and domestic, and 

for purposes of information collection 

burden calculation, the median fee for 

obtaining an MVR or its equivalent from 

either a foreign or a domestic authority 

are the same.23 FMCSA uses the MCMIS 

driver population data, which currently 

includes drivers employed by Canadian 

and Mexican motor carriers, to calculate 

the burden associated with information 

collections and paperwork. Therefore, 

though the proposed rule would 

institute new requirements for motor 

carriers to request MVRs for their 

drivers operating in the United States 

who are licensed by a foreign authority 

rather than by a State, the current OMBapproved information collections for 

§§ 391.23 and 391.25 in the ‘‘Driver 

Qualification Files’’ ICR already include 

reporting and recordkeeping costs 

incurred by motor carriers to request 

MVRs for such drivers. Similarly, the 

current OMB-approved information 

collection for § 391.21 already includes 

reporting and recordkeeping costs 

incurred by drivers to prepare and 

submit employment applications. 

The proposed changes to §§ 391.23 

and 391.25 also would not increase 

costs to motor carriers because of fees 

paid to Canadian and Mexican driver’s 

licensing authorities to obtain the 

equivalent of MVRs. As set forth in 

section 13 of the supporting statement, 

FMCSA has surveyed fees charged by 

driver’s licensing authorities and thirdparty processing companies in Canada 

and has determined that they are 

consistent with those to obtain MVRs 

from States. However, there is no fee to 

obtain MVR equivalents in Mexico. 

The proposed elimination of § 391.27 

would delete IC–2.1 (driver submits list 

of violations to motor carrier) and IC– 

2.2 (motor carrier files list of violations 

in driver qualification file). The 

supporting statement shows the burden 

associated with IC–2.1 is 0.6 million 

hours and $2.16 million. The burden 

associated with IC–2.2 is 0.6 million 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 80759 

hours and $1.74 million. Thus, the 

elimination of § 391.27 would result in 

a paperwork burden reduction of 0.12 

million hours and $3.9 million for 

drivers and motor carriers. 

The draft supporting statement for the 

ICR prepared for this rulemaking is 

compared to the approved supporting 

statement for the ICR. The draft 

supporting statement accounts for the 

incremental reduction in burden hours 

and costs realized from rescinding 

§ 391.27 and updates the driver 

population. The draft supporting 

statement burden hours and costs cover 

the 3-year period ending in 2023, 

whereas the approved supporting 

statement covers the 3-year period 

ending in 2022. Response times for each 

information collection and hourly wage 

rate used to monetize burden hours 

have not been changed. The Agency has 

decreased its estimate of the total 

information collection burden from 

12.26 million hours at a cost of $350.45 

million, to 12.22 million hours at a cost 

of $348.61 million. The net reporting 

and recordkeeping cost savings in the 

draft supporting statement prepared for 

this proposed rule are estimated at $1.84 

million ($350.45 million–$348.61 

million). The estimated $3.9 million 

cost savings from rescinding § 391.27 

are partially offset by a $2.06 million 

increase in labor costs for other 

components of the ICR, adjusted for 

population growth. Thus, the estimated 

net reduction in reporting and 

recordkeeping costs is $1.84 million 

($3.90 million–$2.06 million). 

Title: Driver Qualification Files. 

OMB Control Number: 2126–0004. 

Type of Review: Revision of a 

currently-approved information 

collection. 

Summary: The proposed rule would 

eliminate § 391.27 and the requirements 

that a driver operating a CMV complete 

a list of convictions for traffic violations 

or a certification of no traffic violations, 

and submit the list or certification to his 

or her employer on an annual basis. The 

motor carrier must file the lists and 

certifications in the driver’s 

qualification file. The proposed 

elimination of § 391.27 would delete 

current IC–2.1 (driver submits list of 

violations to motor carrier) and IC–2.2 

(motor carrier files list of violations in 

driver qualification file). In the 

summary statistics below, motor carriers 

are included in the estimated number of 

respondents. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

6.93 million (6.39 million drivers + 0.54 

million motor carriers). 

Estimated responses: 98.37 million. 

Frequency: Responses may be 

random, annual, or when hiring a 

driver. 

Estimated burden hours: 12.22 

million. 

Estimated cost: $348.61 million. 

FMCSA asks for comment on the 

information collection requirements of 

this proposed rule, as well as the total 

paperwork burden for the ICR. The 

Agency’s analysis of these comments 

will be used in devising the Agency’s 

estimate of the information collection 

burden of the final rule. The draft 

rulemaking and approved supporting 

statements for this ICR are available in 

the docket for comment and review. 

Specifically, the Agency asks for 

comment on: (1) Whether the proposed 

information collection is necessary for 

FMCSA to perform its functions; (2) 

how the Agency can improve the 

quality, usefulness, and clarity of the 

information to be collected; (3) the 

accuracy of FMCSA’s estimate of the 

burden of this information collection; 

and (4) how the Agency can minimize 

the burden of the information 

collection. 

If you have comments on the 

collection of information, you must 

send those comments as described 

under Section I.E. of the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section at the beginning of 

this document. 

H. E.O. 13132 (Federalism) 

A rule has implications for federalism 

under section 1(a) of E.O. 13132 if it has 

‘‘substantial direct effects on the States, 

on the relationship between the national 

government and the States, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government.’’ FMCSA 

determined that this proposal would not 

have substantial direct costs on or for 

States, nor would it limit the 

policymaking discretion of States. 

Nothing in this document preempts any 

State law or regulation. Therefore, this 

rule does not have sufficient federalism 

implications to warrant the preparation 

of a Federalism Impact Statement. 

I. Privacy 

Section 522 of title I of division H of 

the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 

2005 (Pub. L. 108–447, 118 Stat. 2809, 

3268 (Dec. 8, 2004), note following 5 

U.S.C. 552a), requires the Agency to 

conduct a privacy impact assessment of 

a regulation that will affect the privacy 

of individuals. The assessment 

considers impacts of the rule on the 

privacy of information in an identifiable 

form and related matters. The FMCSA 

Privacy Officer has evaluated the risks 

and effects the rulemaking might have 

on collecting, storing, and sharing 

personally identifiable information and 

has evaluated protections and 

alternative information handling 

processes in developing the rule to 

mitigate potential privacy risks. FMCSA 

determined that this proposed rule does 

not create privacy risks to individuals. 

In addition, the Agency submitted a 

Privacy Threshold Assessment 

analyzing the rulemaking to the DOT, 

Office of the Secretary’s Privacy Office. 

The DOT Privacy Office also has 

determined that this rulemaking does 

not create privacy risk. 

The E-Government Act of 2002, 

Public Law 107–347, sec. 208, 116 Stat. 

2899, 2921 (Dec. 17, 2002), requires 

Federal agencies to conduct a privacy 

impact assessment for new or 

substantially changed technology that 

collects, maintains, or disseminates 

information in an identifiable form. No 

new or substantially changed 

technology would collect, maintain, or 

disseminate information because of this 

proposed rule. 

J. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal 

Governments) 

This proposed rule does not have 

Tribal implications under E.O. 13175, 

Consultation and Coordination with 

Indian Tribal Governments, because it 

does not have a substantial direct effect 

on one or more Indian Tribes, on the 

relationship between the Federal 

Government and Indian Tribes, or on 

the distribution of power and 

responsibilities between the Federal 

Government and Indian Tribes. 

K. National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969 

FMCSA analyzed this proposed rule 

consistent with the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and determined this 

action is categorically excluded from 

further analysis and documentation in 

an environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement under 

FMCSA Order 5610.1 (69 FR 9680, Mar. 

1, 2004), Appendix 2, paragraph 6.s.(2). 

The Categorical Exclusion (CE) in 

paragraph 6.s.(2) covers a requirement 

for drivers to notify their current 

employer and State of domicile of 

certain convictions. The proposed 

deregulatory action in this rulemaking is 

covered by this CE, there are no 

extraordinary circumstances present, 

and the proposed rule would not have 

any effect on the quality of the 

environment. 


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80760 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 240 / Monday, December 14, 2020 / Proposed Rules 

List of Subjects 

49 CFR Part 385 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Highway safety, Mexico, 

Motor carriers, Motor vehicle safety, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

49 CFR Part 391 

Alcohol abuse, Drug abuse, Drug 

testing, Highway safety, Motor carriers, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Safety, and 

Transportation. 

Accordingly, FMCSA proposes to 

amend 49 CFR chapter III to read as 

follows: 

PART 385—SAFETY FITNESS 

PROCEDURES 

■ 1. The authority citation for Part 385 

is revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 113, 504, 521(b), 

5105(d), 5109, 5113, 13901–13905, 13908, 

31135, 31136, 31144, 31148, 31151, 31502; 

sec. 350, Pub. L. 107–87, 115 Stat. 833, 864; 

and 49 CFR 1.87. 

■ 2. Amend Appendix B to Part 385, 

section VII, by removing the entry for 

‘‘§ 391.51(b)(7)’’ and adding an entry for 

‘‘§ 391.51(b)(6)’’ to read as follows: 

Appendix B to Part 385—Explanation 

of Safety Rating Process 

* * * * * 

VII. List of Acute and Critical 

Regulations. 

* * * * * 

§ 391.51(b)(6) Failing to maintain medical 

examiner’s certificate in driver’s 

qualification file (critical). 

* * * * * 

PART 391—QUALIFICATIONS OF 

DRIVERS AND LONGER 

COMBINATION VEHICLE (LCV) 

DRIVER INSTRUCTORS 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 391 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 504, 508, 31133, 

31136, 31149, 31502; sec. 4007(b), Pub. L. 

102–240, 105 Stat. 1914, 2152; sec. 114, Pub. 

L. 103–311, 108 Stat. 1673, 1677; sec. 215, 

Pub. L. 106–159, 113 Stat. 1748, 1767; sec. 

32934, Pub. L. 112–141, 126 Stat. 405, 830; 

secs. 5403 and 5524, Pub. L. 114–94, 129 

Stat. 1312, 1548, 1560; sec. 2, Pub. L. 115– 

105, 131 Stat. 2263; and 49 CFR 1.87. 

§ 391.11 General qualifications of drivers 

[Amended] 

■ 4. Amend § 391.11 by removing 

paragraph (b)(6) and redesignating 

paragraphs (b)(7) and (8) as paragraphs 

(b)(6) and (7), respectively. 

■ 5. Amend § 391.21 by revising 

paragraph (b)(5) to read as follows: 

§ 391.21 Application for employment. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(5) The issuing driver’s licensing 

authority, number, and expiration date 

of each unexpired commercial motor 

vehicle operator’s license or permit that 

has been issued to the applicant; 

* * * * * 

■ 6. Amend § 391.23 by revising 

paragraphs (a)(1) and (b) to read as 

follows: 

§ 391.23 Investigation and inquiries. 

(a) * * * 

(1) An inquiry, within 30 days of the 

date the driver’s employment begins, to 

each driver’s licensing authority where 

the driver held or holds a motor vehicle 

operator’s license or permit during the 

preceding 3 years to obtain that driver’s 

motor vehicle record. 

* * * * * 

(b) A copy of the motor vehicle 

record(s) obtained in response to the 

inquiry or inquiries to each driver’s 

licensing authority required by 

paragraph (a)(1) of this section must be 

placed in the driver qualification file 

within 30 days of the date the driver’s 

employment begins and be retained in 

compliance with § 391.51. If no motor 

vehicle record is received from a 

driver’s licensing authority required to 

submit this response, the motor carrier 

must document a good faith effort to 

obtain such information. The inquiry to 

a driver’s licensing authority must be 

made in the form and manner each 

authority prescribes. 

* * * * * 

■ 7. Revise § 391.25(a) to read as 

follows: 

§ 391.25 Annual inquiry and review of 

driving record. 

(a) Except as provided in subpart G of 

this part, each motor carrier shall, at 

least once every 12 months, make an 

inquiry to obtain the motor vehicle 

record of each driver it employs, 

covering at least the preceding 12 

months, to each driver’s licensing 

authority where the driver held a 

commercial motor vehicle operator’s 

license or permit during the time 

period. 

* * * * * 

§ 391.27 [Removed and Reserved] 

■ 8. Remove and reserve § 391.27. 

■ 9. Amend § 391.51 as follows: 

■ a. Revise paragraphs (b)(2) and (4); 

■ b. Remove paragraph (b)(6) and 

redesignate paragraphs (b)(7) through (9) 

as paragraphs (b)(6) through (8), 

respectively; 

■ c. Revise paragraph (d)(1); 

■ d. Remove paragraph (d)(3) and 

redesignate paragraphs (d)(4) through 

(6) as paragraphs (d)(3) through (5), 

respectively; and 

■ e. Revise newly redesignated 

paragraph (d)(3). 

The revisions to read as follows: 

§ 391.51 General requirements for driver 

qualification files. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(2) A copy of the motor vehicle record 

received from each driver’s licensing 

authority pursuant to § 391.23(a)(1); 

* * * * * 

(4) The motor vehicle record received 

from each driver’s licensing authority to 

the annual driver record inquiry 

required by § 391.25(a); 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(1) The motor vehicle record received 

from each driver’s licensing authority to 

the annual driver record inquiry 

required by § 391.25(a); 

* * * * * 

(3) The medical examiner’s certificate 

required by § 391.43(g), a legible copy of 

the certificate, or, for CDL drivers, any 

CDLIS MVR obtained as required by 

§ 391.51(b)(6)(ii); 

* * * * * 

■ 10. Amend § 391.63 by revising 

paragraphs (a)(3) and (4) and removing 

paragraph (a)(5) to read as follows: 

§ 391.63 Multiple-employer drivers. 

(a) * * * 

(3) Perform the annual driving record 

inquiry required by § 391.25(a); or 

(4) Perform the annual review of the 

person’s driving record required by 

§ 391.25(b). 

* * * * * 

Issued under authority delegated in 49 CFR 

1.87. 

James W. Deck, 

Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2020–26957 Filed 12–11–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 


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