Truck drivers have been advocating for broker reform for years.
That effort endured its latest setback when it was announced last week that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration proposed to delay the compliance date of its broker financial responsibility rule until 2026.
FMCSA said it needs to delay the current compliance date of Jan. 16, 2025 to Jan. 16, 2026.
“This action is being proposed because FMCSA has determined that only its forthcoming online registration system will be used to accept filings and track notifications, and this functionality will not be added to its legacy systems,” the agency wrote in the notice. “As the new system is not expected to be available before Jan. 16, 2025, FMCSA proposed to extend the compliance date to provide regulated entities time to begin using and familiarizing themselves with the system before compliance is required.”
It means another delay for truckers seeking tighter rules regarding brokers. The final rule, which was issued in November 2023, takes several steps to improve broker security regulations. That includes the suspension of operating authority if the available financial security falls below $75,000.
FMCSA will accept comments on the proposed delay through Nov. 19. Comments may be made here or by going to Regulations.gov and entering FMCSA-2024-0280.
Broker transparency
In addition to FMCSA’s proposed delay to the financial responsibility rule, truckers have been waiting for years for the agency to address the lack of broker transparency.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which represents small-business truckers, petitioned FMCSA in 2020 to create a rulemaking that would strengthen and lead to enforcement of existing broker transparency rules. That petition was accepted in 2023 and the rulemaking was targeted for this past October, but a proposal still has not surfaced.
OOIDA recently relayed truck drivers’ frustration over the lack of action.
“It’s inexplicable that the FMCSA continues to shirk its basic responsibility and, again, is kicking the can down the road on a regulation that has been required since 1980,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer said in a statement. “The 150,000 small-business truckers OOIDA represents have a simple message to FMCSA: Do your damn job!” LL
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