Latest news with #FMCSA
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a day ago
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Blitz week breakdown: top violations; authority approvals down 50%; tariffs?
This embedded content is not available in your region. On episode 844 of WHAT THE TRUCK?!? Dooner is catching up with SearchCarrier's Garrett Allen. His new site allows you to easily look up any carrier and see how often it's been put out of service, inspected and more. We're also diving into his blitz week dashboard to break down this year's top violations. Konexial's Jerry D'Addesi on the latest in AI load matching, double broker prevention and edge computing. Is the FMCSA starting to take freight fraud more seriously? After FMCSA's identity verification became mandatory in April 2025, published authority counts dropped by over 50%. We'll take a look at the numbers. And in headlines: tariffs on, tariffs off; fast food restaurants vs fleet sizes; excessive LEGO sets and more. Chapters 3:04 New authority approvals down 50% 5:19 Tariffs on, tariffs off, tariffs on8:16 Fleet sizes vs. fast food restaurant locations 10:52 Konexial | Jerry D'Addesi 16:54 FreightTech innovations | Jerry D'Addesi 20:15 Too much LEGO 22:40 SearchCarriers | Garrett Allen27:41 Blitz week breakdown | Garrett Allen Catch new shows live at noon EDT Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays on FreightWaves LinkedIn, Facebook, X or YouTube, or on demand by looking up WHAT THE TRUCK?!? on your favorite podcast player and at 5 p.m. Eastern on SiriusXM's Road Dog Trucking Channel 146. Watch on YouTube Check out the WTT merch storeVisit our sponsor Subscribe to the WTT newsletter Apple Podcasts Spotify More FreightWaves Podcasts The post Blitz week breakdown: top violations; authority approvals down 50%; tariffs? | WHAT THE TRUCK?!? appeared first on FreightWaves. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
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2 days ago
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FMCSA crackdown on carrier fraud halves newly granted authorities
Recent identity verification changes by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration are having a major impact on the number of newly minted operating authorities, according to research from CarrierOK. Beginning in early 2025, the FMCSA rolled out a new identity verification process that starts with applicants being redirected to Idemia, a third-party identity verification vendor. The next steps include the collection of personal information including biometric data to verify a carrier's identity. After completion, applicants are able to complete the next step, which is being added to the Unified Registration System, the combined database that the FMCSA uses to house the data for carriers, freight forwarders and brokers. Despite the fact that the FMCSA doesn't receive any personal data collected by Idemia except to confirm that identity verification has been completed, the results of this change are staggering, according to CarrierOK. The turning point from the monthslong anti-fraud rollout was in April, when the full facial recognition and ID upload requirement went live for all new applicants. CarrierOK's initial data from April showed a major shift in new carrier application trends, which CarrierOK tracks through each stage of the process beginning with filed, published then granted. CarrierOK wrote in a blogpost, 'The Filed-to-Published conversion rate – typically around 60-65% in months prior – cratered to roughly 30% in April. In other words, well over half of all applications filed in April failed to advance past FMCSA's screening to the Federal Register published stage, whereas before April the majority would have made it through.' The new bottleneck came from the filed-to-published step, which represents applications that cleared initial vetting and are now entering a 21-day comment period before final approval. 'In short, many applicants are hitting a roadblock due to the IDEMIA identity checks or address validation and thus never make it to publication,' said CarrierOK. Cannot verify identity equals cannot get new operating authority. While the 50% decline in published authorities has tightened the funnel, CarrierOK notes that legitimate new entrants are still applying. It's just that a large portion of those submissions, by possible fraudsters, are no longer making it to the finish line. Looking ahead, this verification will also extend outward to existing carriers who need to renew their government forms. CarrierOK adds, 'Existing carriers will also have to undergo verification when they update their info, with ~800,000 current registrants eventually needing to verify identity as well.' April brought further declines in volumes, pricing and capacity, according to recent data released by ACT Research's For-Hire Trucking Index. The Diffusion Index shows a reading above 50 as growth while a reading below 50 signals degradation. The Volume Index saw its second straight month of significant softness, falling from 43.6 points in March to 43.4 points seasonally adjusted in April. 'Even with some degree of pre-tariff shipping happening, it appears the adverse effects of tariffs are already starting to play out. Declining container ship traffic suggests broadly weak volume will continue in the near term, but the 90-day step down in US/China tariffs is spurring significant activity into Q3,' wrote ACT Research in the release. The Pricing Index fell 12.1 points month over month from 51.5 in March to 39.4 points seasonally adjusted in April, levels not seen since August 2023. The report notes that 'demand softened following a surge in pre-tariff imports, interrupting the modest momentum in rates.' The decline was the third-largest in the 15-year history of the survey. However, while pricing uncertainty remains, 'The supply side should contract as private fleets end their expansion, tariffs add to equipment costs, and for-hire fleet financials are impacted.' For fleets looking to hire, one positive indicator that remains is driver availability. That index rose 3 points m/m from 51 in March to 54 in April. It's the 35th straight month the index has been above 50, with the report noting a large factor behind the availability is the significant increases in wages during the pandemic. Another was owner-operators turning in their authorities and returning to work under larger fleets. The post FMCSA crackdown on carrier fraud halves newly granted authorities appeared first on FreightWaves.
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2 days ago
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DOT's deregulation barrage raises compliance concerns for trucking
WASHINGTON — The axing of dozens of regulations this week by the U.S. Department of Transportation has raised concerns from trucking industry experts concerned about compliance and safety. While the majority of the 52 deregulatory actions affecting the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Highway Administration provide 60-day comment periods to allow for public protest, most if not all will likely be taken off the books. 'Big government has been a big failure,' said Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, commenting on the changes in a press statement on Thursday. 'Under President Trump's leadership, my department is slashing duplicative and outdated regulations that are unnecessarily burdensome, waste taxpayer dollars, and fail to ensure safety. These are common sense changes that will help us build a more efficient government that better reflects the needs of the American people.' Of the 20 actions taken at FMCSA, two are final rules and 18 are proposed rules that would either amend or rescind current regulations. P. Sean Garney, a trucking regulatory expert and co-director at Scopelitis Transportation Consulting, singled out several of FMCSA's deregulatory actions for potential compliance issues. For example, while Garney considers reasonable a proposal to eliminate a requirement that truck drivers keep a hard copy of the truck's electronic logging device user manual on board, 'what's a little tricky and what carriers will need to take note of if these are finalized as written is that it only applies to the user manual,' he told FreightWaves in an email. 'Drivers are still required to carry (or store electronically) the instructions for how to transfer data at roadside and the instruction sheet for how to deal with a malfunction, not to mention blank logs. It'll be important for motor carriers to make sure drivers have access to it either way. It's like your car user manual, you don't need it until you need it.' FMCSA also proposes revising a requirement that motor carriers and intermodal equipment providers sign and return a completed roadside inspection form to their issuing state agency. Because not all states require that they be returned, FMCSA wants the form-return requirement to apply only to carriers obligated to do so by their state – and that could be a problem, Garney cautioned. 'While many states do not require these inspection reports to be signed and returned … others still require them,' he said. 'If removing the requirement is the best course of action, I wish FMCSA would have pulled the trigger for all states, rather than leave us guessing on who requires it be returned and who doesn't. Figuring this out and adhering to it is a burden.' FMCSA's proposal to rescind a manufacture certification label requirement for rear impact guards on truck trailers has a potential enforcement issue lurking, according to Garney. Motor carriers have balked at the requirement because the labels can become worn and illegible. 'What's interesting about this one is that this notice is just half the story,' he said. 'Removing this from [FMCSA's regulations] will help out carriers at roadside as inspectors won't be able to write the violation … but the requirement still lives in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, which are controlled by NHTSA.' In the event of a failure of a rear guard that has a worn label, 'who will be left holding the bag? Who's in charge here?' The list of deregulatory actions at FMCSA has raised red flags at the Truck Safety Coalition, which advocates for truck crash victims and their families. 'Certainly time has rendered some regulations obsolete,' acknowledged TSC Executive Director Zach Cahalan in an email to FreightWaves. However, 'TSC remains concerned FMCSA is rushing to fulfill campaign pledges and failing to uphold its historically high burden to prove any deregulatory changes will not adversely impact safety.' As an example, Cahalan pointed to FMCSA's proposal to rescind a regulation requiring retroreflective sheeting on semitrailers and trailers (which improves their visibility at night) manufactured before 1993. 'FMCSA declares 'it believes' trailers manufactured prior to 1993 are not in use, but fails to quantify this assertion in any way, shape, or form,' he said. Regarding eliminating the ELD manual requirement, 'it's probably a good idea to keep ELD manuals in rigs as there is no reason to believe all drivers receive sufficient training in their use and operation, something our victims can tragically attest to.' He emphasized that driver fatigue – which the ELD mandate is supposed to help address – 'remains a chronic problem in the industry and is frequently cited by the NTSB as a contributor in most truck crashes.' DOT takes heat for drug testing certification delays Lawmakers look at expanding FMCSA's power to rein in cargo theft Trump's NHTSA nominee raises concerns among truck safety advocates Click for more FreightWaves articles by John Gallagher. The post DOT's deregulation barrage raises compliance concerns for trucking appeared first on FreightWaves.
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2 days ago
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Freight Fraud and Cargo Theft: The Epidemic Nobody Wants to Talk About
In the trucking industry, fraud and cargo theft are full-blown crises. Maybe this isn't Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese and Lucchese-level organized crime, but make no mistake, organized crime exploits vulnerabilities in our supply chains and it's impacting everyone from small carriers to global shippers. We delve into the realities of freight fraud, the effectiveness of recent Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration identity checks and how industry initiatives like Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) verification and the Freight Fraud Task Force are reshaping the fight against these crimes. At its simplest, freight fraud is a deception involving carriers, brokers or shippers to steal freight, money or even company identities. Common tactics include double brokering, where fraudulent brokers rebook freight without authorization, often leaving carriers unpaid, and carrier identity theft, in which scammers use legitimate carrier credentials, including MC or DOT numbers, to book and steal freight. Legitimate carriers suffer twice, losing income and getting saddled with compliance violations they didn't commit or lawsuits they had no involvement in. Cargo theft has become sophisticated. Criminal groups arrange fake pickups using forged paperwork, forged credentials and counterfeit identification. Recently, authorities in Los Angeles County alone recovered over $1.3 million in stolen merchandise, ranging from electric bikes and Sony TVs to beauty products and electronics, emphasizing how lucrative and widespread these crimes have become. Part of the blame lies with the agency designed to prevent it, the FMCSA. Existing laws such as MAP-21 (2012) explicitly require the FMCSA to vet brokers thoroughly, yet these requirements, like mandatory knowledge tests and documented experience, remain largely unenforced. Today, anyone with roughly $1,500 (a $300 FMCSA fee, $1,000 down on a surety bond and minimal administrative costs) can become a broker. This ease of entry allows fraudulent brokers to scam shippers, pocket cash and disappear overnight. The FMCSA's own data systems are notoriously muddy and inadequate in highlighting fraudulent activity or clearly detailing limited authority for carriers, especially enterprise carriers, which frequently operate beyond their permitted scope. Recognizing these vulnerabilities, the FMCSA began implementing stringent measures in April to tighten identity verification. Working with Idemia, the FMCSA introduced mandatory facial recognition and government-issued ID checks for all new motor carrier applicants. The immediate impact of this initiative was significant. According to data from CarrierOK, the filed-to-published application approval rate, previously around 60%-65%, plummeted dramatically to roughly 30% after the verification rollout. This sudden drop might mean that the new ID checks are successfully weeding out fraudulent or incomplete applications before they even reach public review, or the agency is so slow in processing applications because of a lack of resources that it's miring down the process. Although the number of total filings remains steady, the sharp decline in published approvals might indicate a crackdown effect, clearly demonstrating that tighter identity controls are effectively curbing fraud at the entry point. Notice I said 'might.' The industry isn't just standing by. It's tired of the crazy. Solutions are emerging to tackle freight fraud proactively, led by innovative platforms like FreightValidate. Founder Dale Prax and partners John Cantera, Jeff Dickinson, Bill Robinson, Claudia Atletts and others (including myself) have established or are part of the Freight Fraud Task Force Inc, to curb industry fraud through education, audits, best practices and accountability at every level. FreightValidate's partnership with AU10TIX has introduced powerful, yet user-friendly verification tools. In under 90 seconds, carriers, drivers and brokers can complete facial recognition and real-time ID checks on any mobile device. This rapid validation ensures that the people handling the freight are exactly who they claim to be, dramatically reducing fraud opportunities before the truck arrives at the loading dock. I have long advocated for a cyberphysical approach to logistics fraud. A year or so ago, I wrote an article on a model for mitigating double brokering through integrated technologies. Leverage blockchain, smart contracts, digital identity verification and real-time tracking to build a trust-driven freight system. I even name-dropped Rich Mason, president and Chief Security Officer at Critical Infrastructure and Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) legend, to hopefully draw him into this good time. The idea centers on a blockchain-based reputation system, where carriers, brokers and shippers earn scores based on performance, disputes and reliability. Smart contracts would lock in terms and trigger updates on the blockchain with each completed task. Verified digital identities, powered by facial recognition or biometrics, would restrict access to only authenticated users. Internet-of-things-based shipment tracking and AI-driven analytics could enhance this digital fortress to flag fraud patterns before a single invoice is sent. I believe that fighting fraud requires cybersecurity-level thinking. At the end of the day, our only solution is a solid cybersecurity program and some good CISOs to put it all together for us mere layman transportation folk. Ironically, FMCSA recently launched a costly facial recognition partnership with Idemia. Why spend millions on new systems when we already have proven verification mechanisms with a criminal background element like the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC)? What sense does that make? Not much, but maybe the issue is we have such a revolving door at the federal agency that the people running the FMCSA aren't familiar enough with the supply chain to know what we have and what we don't or how to use it practically. TWIC, used extensively in ports, provides biometric verification and comprehensive background checks that go beyond simple identity confirmation. Implementing TWIC requirements for brokers and carriers would significantly strengthen vetting, ensuring that criminals don't just find new ways around superficial security measures. An extra $125 added to the FMCSA's application fee could cover these deeper screenings, bringing significant ROI in fraud prevention without burdening taxpayers. The Freight Fraud Task Force emphasizes practical, actionable steps over mere technology deployment. Real-time, in-person carrier audits at loading docks, comprehensive fraud-awareness training and best practices education form the backbone of its strategy. Companies are encouraged to actively participate, share information and implement robust anti-fraud measures in-house. The Task Force's Risk Assessment Audit Program provides audits, tailored training and certifications to proactively catch fraud early. The mantra here isn't cleanup after the theft, it's prevention before the crime happens. Ultimately, meaningful change requires industrywide accountability and governmental enforcement. As long as laws remain unenforced, cargo theft and fraud will persist, inflating consumer costs and damaging reputable carriers and brokers. FMCSA and the Department of Transportation need to commit fully to vetting carriers, brokers and shippers, enforcing existing laws and cooperating closely with private initiatives that are already making significant strides. The time to act isn't tomorrow, it's now. The freight industry's future, its integrity and its profitability depend on stopping fraud and theft before they happen. Industry leaders, tech innovators, regulators and carriers must unite under a common mission: protecting the lifeblood of our economy by finally enforcing the accountability and integrity this industry deserves. The post Freight Fraud and Cargo Theft: The Epidemic Nobody Wants to Talk About appeared first on FreightWaves.
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3 days ago
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FMCSA streamlines regulations on truck routing, civil penalties
WASHINGTON — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is making changes to two truck safety regulations to eliminate potential red tape and improve consistency and clarity for the industry. In a final rule that takes effect on Friday, FMCSA is repealing for-hire motor carrier routing regulations as they relate to serving municipalities and unincorporated communities, according to a notice posted on Tuesday. 'The purpose of this final rule is to remove an outdated regulation … as it no longer accurately reflects the agency's current statutory authority,' FMCSA stated. The motor carrier routing regulation authorizes freight carriers and freight forwarders to serve points within the commercial zones and territorial limits of municipalities and unincorporated communities. However, federal law does not authorize FMCSA to include routing limitations when granting operating authority to U.S.-domiciled motor carriers, the agency stated, which makes the motor carrier routing regulation obsolete. 'This final rule will remove the obsolete regulation thereby streamlining the CFR [Code of Federal Regulations] and eliminating a source of possible confusion for stakeholders.' Final rules issued by FMCSA are routinely preceded by a notice-and-comment period. That will not happen in this case, because 'retaining regulations that are unlawful is plainly contrary to the public interest,' the notice states. 'Agencies thus have ample cause and the legal authority to immediately repeal unlawful regulations. Furthermore, notice-and-comment proceedings are unnecessary where repeal is based purely on legal analysis. For these reasons, FMCSA finds good cause that notice and public comment on this final rule are unnecessary.' In another final rule posted on Tuesday, a civil penalties schedule update, FMCSA is amending its regulations to remove the reference to rules under the Transportation Department's 'Procedures for Transportation Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Program' from the agency's civil penalty schedule. 'Instead, the civil penalty schedule will refer solely to the part of the Code of Federal Regulations where this program is incorporated' into the regulations, FMCSA stated. 'Because the rule does not impose any new material requirements or increase compliance obligations, it is issued without prior notice and opportunity for comment.' The agency explained that removing the reference to DOT's drug and alcohol testing procedures will not affect FMCSA's enforcement programs because any recordkeeping violations relating to testing for controlled substances and alcohol would be cited under a different part of the CFR. 'The amendment made in this final rule serves to remove an erroneous reference and to improve clarity for stakeholders,' FMCSA stated. 'It is technical in nature and does not impose any new material requirements or increase compliance obligations.' FMCSA unveils 18 proposed rule changes DOT takes heat for drug testing certification delays Lawmakers look at expanding FMCSA's power to rein in cargo theft Click for more FreightWaves articles by John Gallagher. The post FMCSA streamlines regulations on truck routing, civil penalties appeared first on FreightWaves.
