Federal officials are seeking authority to shut down motor carriers that employ officials who have shown “egregious disregard” for safety regulations.
Under the proposal, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration would revoke the operating authority of a carrier if someone who has controlling influence of the company’s operations “engages or has engaged in a pattern or practice of avoiding regulatory compliance or masking noncompliance while acting on behalf of any motor carrier.”
The proposal, released Friday, further strengthens FMCSA’s “ability to take unsafe trucks and buses off the road if the agency finds that a carrier purposefully employs officers with a history of blatant disregard for safety,” the agency said.
A “small number” of carriers would be subject to the regulation, FMCSA said.
If FMCSA finalizes the proposal, it would implement provisions of major transportation laws passed in 2005 and earlier this year, which sought to shut down carriers with unsafe management.
The agency is accepting public comments on the proposed regulation until Jan. 13. Click here to view the rule or to submit a comment. (U.S. government website.)
