CVSA asks FMCSA to change inspection report reqs

WASHINGTON — The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) is petitioning the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to remove a requirement that motor carriers return inspection reports to the issuing agency.

Collin B. Mooney, Executive Director of the CVSA, made the request to FMCSA Deputy Administrator Sue Lawless in a letter dated April 2.

Currently, Title 49 CFR § 396.9(d)(3) requires that motor carriers and intermodal equipment providers return inspection reports to the issuing agency within 15 days of issuance, certifying that all necessary repairs have been made.

In its petition, the CVSA is asking that the regulation be amended so that the carrier is required to keep a copy of the inspection report at the principal place of business or where the vehicle is housed for one year.

The issuing agency still would have the option to require the carrier or equipment provider to return the completed roadside inspection form.

“According to FMCSA’s Analysis and Information Online database, in 2023, states issued 2,937,535 inspection reports, of which 1,666,282 included a violation(s),” the CVSA’s petition letter states. “Motor carriers were required to sign and return those 1,666,282 inspection reports to the issuing agency. CVSA’s Policy and Regulatory Affairs Committee received an Issue/Request for Action from the North Carolina State Highway Police, asking that the Alliance consider petitioning FMCSA to remove the requirement that motor carriers return signed inspection reports certifying that the necessary repairs have been conducted.”

Mooney further states in his letter to the FMCSA that ” While the regulations require the motor carrier sign and return the inspection report, there is no corresponding requirement that the issuing agency do anything with the returned form. As such, the majority of jurisdictions simply file the forms away or dispose of them, without taking any additional action that would benefit or improve safety. In some instances, the motor carrier is faxing or mailing a physical copy of the form to the issuing agency, which must then scan the form for digital record keeping or file the form with physical files.”

Further, Mooney writes, “the state jurisdictions have access to Query Central to view past inspections, should they need to for enforcement purposes, making this requirement antiquated and redundant. Removing this requirement would eliminate an unnecessary administrative burden on both the motor carriers and the state agencies who receive them, with no reduction in safety, as, is noted above, most jurisdictions do not use the forms for any purpose once they are returned.”

John Worthen

Born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and raised in East Texas, John Worthen returned to his home state to attend college in 1998 and decided to make his life in The Natural State. Worthen is a 20-year veteran of the journalism industry and has covered just about every topic there is. He has a passion for writing and telling stories. He has worked as a beat reporter and bureau chief for a statewide newspaper and as managing editor of a regional newspaper in Arkansas. Additionally, Worthen has been a prolific freelance journalist for two decades, and has been published in several travel magazines and on travel websites.