Citing “ongoing safety concerns”, a major trucking advocacy organization is calling on the Department of Transportation to suspend states’ authority to issue non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses for interstate commerce.
The Owner-Operators Independent Drivers Association Monday sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, which said the proposed suspension ought to be in place until the DOT finishes its review of non-domiciled CDL issuance, which was included in the Enforcing Commonsense Rules of the Road for America’s Truck Drivers executive order signed by President Donald Trump.
The OOIDA also questioned if allowing states to issue non-domiciled CDL is even necessary.
The letter, signed by OOIDA President and CEO Todd Spencer, in part says:
“As USDOT continues its nationwide audit into state practices involving non-domiciled CDLs, we urge you to consider how these drivers are being recruited, compensated, and treated, as well as the safety records of motor carriers utilizing these CDL holders. While we question the need for this program entirely, as trucking is currently experiencing over-capacity that limits job opportunities for domestic drivers, we believe the audit will provide more clarity on steps that must be taken to ensure safety.
“Once the audit is complete, USDOT should at a minimum require a thorough review of a non-domiciled applicant’s driving history before they are eligible to receive their license. Specifically, there should be a review that encompasses the last 10 years of driving history and includes all types of motor vehicles (49 CFR 383.73) and all jurisdictions. This would help ensure that non-domiciled applicants face the same level of scrutiny as U.S.-domiciled applicants, who are currently subject to this 10-year review. In short, no one should be getting a CDL if they have an unsafe driving history.”
In its letter, the OOIDA also commented on other safety issues. They said::
- USDOT should take steps to better ensure motor carriers are complying with safety regulations that keep drivers with an unsafe history off the road. (Federal law) requires drivers to provide motor carriers with information related to their driving history, including a list of all motor vehicle accidents in which they were involved and violations of motor vehicles laws they were issued over the previous three years. By cracking down on carriers skirting these requirements, USDOT can immediately remove unsafe drivers and operations from the road.
- USDOT can also improve safety by enhancing oversight of new carrier applicants prior to granting operating authority. Currently, bad actors and unqualified drivers can quickly obtain operating authority because the barriers to entry are simply too low … The lack of sufficient review for new entrants also allows ‘chameleon carriers’ to reenter our industry with relative ease, despite previous violations.
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