A recently introduced piece of legislation intended to address the growing issues of cargo theft and freight fraud would bring sweeping changes to the transportation industry.
On Thursday, Feb. 26, Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., introduced the Securing American Freight, Enforcement, and Reliability in Transport Act. According to a release from the Senator’s office, the proposed legislation – tabbed the SAFER Transport Act – seeks to “address ongoing issues negatively impacting U.S. freight and highways, improve roadway safety for Americans and protect our national security.”
“Americans deserve safe and reliable supply chains and roads,” Young said in a news release. “The SAFER Transport Act takes important steps to strengthen our transportation infrastructure, combat crime that is hurting U.S. consumers and businesses, and ensure our roads are safe for all Americans.”
Citing record-high levels of cargo theft, which has been exacerbated over the past three years with the emergence of domestic and international criminal organizations, Young said the bill would “strengthen federal efforts to prevent, detect and punish freight fraud and cargo theft”.
“These groups are using increasingly sophisticated fraudulent tactics such as fictitious pickups, double-brokering scams, and hostage loads, to steal shipments without detection,” the Senator’s office said. “Despite these rising threats, prosecutorial standards are inconsistent across states and localities, leading to a lack of enforcement, misclassification of crimes, and chronic underreporting.”
To say the bill only addresses cargo theft would be an oversimplification. In fact, the bill seems to tackle the issue in a variety of ways, including making significant changes to how carriers, brokers and freight forwarders register with the federal government.
A key element of the proposed legislation would be the elimination of Motor Carrier numbers. If approved, the bill would require the Secretary of Transportation to immediately suspend the issuance or renewal of MC numbers, and “take other appropriate steps to phase out” MC numbers within five years of the bill’s passage.
During the five-year period, the bill would require all new and existing carriers, brokers, and freight forwarders to transition to using U.S. DOT numbers to register their businesses.
The proposal also expands the department’s ability to stop bad actors before they register by granting the authority to withhold or revoke registration for certain felonies or nondisclosures. According to the bill’s text, any registrant who is found to have “failed to disclose a material fact, submitted fraudulent information, or committed fraud with respect to the registration system,” could have their authority revoked, “motor carrier, broker, or otherwise.”
Additionally, the proposed legislation would mandate the completion of the Unified Carrier Registration System within one year of passage.
In December 2025, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration conducted a soft launch of its new registration system, known as Motus, marking the initial phase of the project. The system is currently limited to transportation service providers, BOC-3 filers and financial responsibility filers. The agency plans to open the new system to all users, including motor carriers, sometime this year.
The bill also aims to combat cargo theft by enhancing oversight for the issuance of commercial driver’s licenses as well as the training of commercial drivers.
The proposed legislation would require states to submit monthly reports to the Transportation Secretary on the number of CLPs, CDLs, foreign non-domiciled CDLs, and endorsements issued by the state. The reports must also include the total number and justification for any revocations, suspensions, or downgrades of commercial driver’s licenses each month.
If approved, the SAFER Transport Act would also increase oversight of states that issue a CDL or CLP to an individual who is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States. Under the proposed legislation, states that issue licenses or permits to individuals in this category must:
- Confirm that the applicant is authorized to work in the United States
- Provide the FMCSA with “such information as the Administrator determines necessary to confirm that the applicant is authorized to work in the United States”
- Align the expiration of the CDL or CLP to the date on which the applicant’s authorization to work in the United States expires
The bill would also require the U.S. DOT to establish a process to audit registered training providers. In addition, the proposed legislation would require the Transportation Secretary to establish a process for states to remove training providers from the registry if the state finds the provider is “no longer in business, has been found guilty of committing fraud, or has violated state regulations governing commercial motor vehicle operator training.”
The proposed legislation also includes the formation of a cargo theft advisory committee.
The bill would require the creation of the Freight Fraud and Theft Advisory Committee within 60 days of passage.
The purpose of the committee, according to the bill, would be to provide public input to the U.S. DOT regarding measures that can be taken to “contribute to the reduction of freight fraud and theft, including ways in which the Department could improve coordination within the Department and between the Department and other Federal agencies to identify and respond to freight fraud and theft.”
Trucking groups have shown their support for the broad cargo theft legislation.
Lewie Pugh, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, said that small-business truckers are particularly vulnerable when it comes to freight fraud.
“Falling victim to even a single scam can cost one of our members their entire livelihood,” Pugh said. “That’s why OOIDA appreciates Chairman Young’s leadership in introducing the SAFER Transport Act, which addresses many of the regulatory shortcomings that have allowed fraudsters, chameleon carriers, unvetted and underqualified drivers, and sham training schools to proliferate. The SAFER Transport Act is a major step towards weeding out the bad actors in our industry who make our roads less safe.”
The American Trucking Association has also expressed their support for the proposed legislation. ATA President Chris Spear applauded Young for his “willingness to listen to the voices of hardworking truckers.”
“Motor carriers spend years building their reputations, but ruthless and sophisticated criminals are actively exploiting loopholes in USDOT’s registration process to steal their identities, capitalize on their good names, and commit cargo theft,” Spear said in a statement. “Small businesses are not equipped to fight large-scale fraud on their own, which is why it is so critical to implement Senator Young’s commonsense reforms that modernize USDOT’s systems to weed out chameleon carriers and enhance oversight and penalties.”
Other legislative efforts to combat cargo theft
Introduced in April 2025, the Combatting Organized Retail Crime Act aims to reduce cargo crime by strengthening law enforcement’s legal tools to pursue and prosecute cargo thieves.
The bill would also mandate the creation of the Organized Retail and Supply Chain Crime Coordination Center within Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Homeland Security. Lawmakers contend this would facilitate collaboration between federal and local agencies investigating cargo crimes.
The proposed legislation currently has 206 co-sponsors. During a recent Committee mark-up session, the House Committee on the Judiciary approved the bill and sent it to the full chamber for a vote. LL
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