Bill Summary
The Motor Carrier Safety Selection Standard Act is a bill that aims to establish a national standard for selecting motor carriers for the transportation of goods. This bill requires covered entities, such as shippers, brokers, and freight forwarders, to verify that the motor carriers they contract with are registered, have the required minimum insurance, and are not considered unfit to operate commercial motor vehicles. The bill also allows the Secretary of Transportation to revoke the registration of any motor carrier found to be unfit. This bill also includes definitions for key terms and a clause stating that it will not override any state laws related to drayage. The Secretary has 18 months to update and revise current regulations to include these requirements.
Possible Impacts
1) This legislation could affect individuals who work as owners or operators of commercial motor vehicles, as they may be subject to revocation of their registration if deemed unfit to operate safely.
2) It could also affect shippers or cosignees of goods, as they are required to verify the registration and insurance coverage of the motor carrier they are contracting with.
3) Customs brokers and indirect air carriers may also be affected, as they are required to meet certain criteria to engage in activities involving transportation of goods.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3042 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3042
To establish a national motor carrier safety selection standard for
entities that contract with certain motor carriers to transport goods,
and for other purposes.
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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 7, 2021
Mr. Gallagher (for himself and Mr. Moulton) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a national motor carrier safety selection standard for
entities that contract with certain motor carriers to transport goods,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Motor Carrier Safety Selection
Standard Act''.
SEC. 2. MOTOR CARRIER SELECTION STANDARD OF CARE.
(a) In General.--
(1) Selection standard.--For any applicable legal
requirement with respect to a covered entity contracting with a
covered motor carrier for the shipment of goods or household
goods, the covered entity shall be considered reasonable and
prudent in the selection of such motor carrier if the covered
entity verifies, not later than the date of shipment and not
earlier than 45 days before the date of shipment, that the
covered motor carrier--
(A) is registered under section 13902 of title 49,
United States Code, as a motor carrier or household
goods motor carrier;
(B) has at least the minimum insurance coverage
required by Federal and State law; and
(C) is not determined unfit to operate safely
commercial motor vehicles under section 31144 of title
49, United States Code, or otherwise ordered to
discontinue operations by the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration (including not renewing a
Department of Transportation registration number) or a
State, for intrastate commerce.
(2) Sunset.--The standard established under paragraph (1)
shall sunset on the effective date of a regulation issued
pursuant to subsection (c).
(b) Revocation of Registration.--Section 31144(a) of title 49,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (3) by striking ``and'';
(2) in paragraph (4) by striking the period and inserting
``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) prescribe by regulation a process for revoking the
registration of an owner or operator determined unfit to
operate safely a commercial motor vehicle under this
section.''.
(c) Rulemaking.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall--
(A) update and revise the regulations issued
pursuant to subsection (b) of section 31144 to include
the requirements of subsection (a); and
(B) issue such regulations as are necessary to
carry out section 31144(a)(5), as added by this Act.
(2) Factors for an unsatisfactory rating.--The regulations
updated under paragraph (1)(A) shall provide a procedure for
the Secretary to determine if a motor carrier is not fit to
operate a commercial motor vehicle in or affecting interstate
commerce in accordance with such section.
(d) Savings Clause.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to
preempt or supercede any State law or regulation relating to drayage.
(e) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Covered entity.--The term ``covered entity'' means a
person acting as--
(A) a shipper or cosignee of goods, except that
such term does not mean a person acting as an
individual shipper (as such term is defined in section
13103 of title 49, United States Code);
(B) a broker, a freight forwarder, or a household
goods freight forwarder (as such terms are defined in
section 13102 of title 49, United States Code);
(C) an ocean transportation intermediary (as such
term is defined in section 40102 of title 46, United
States Code), when arranging for inland transportation
as part of an international through movement involving
ocean transportation between the United States and a
foreign port;
(D) an indirect air carrier holding a Standard
Security Program approved by the Transportation
Security Administration, only to the extent that the
indirect air carrier is engaging in the activities as
an air carrier as defined in section 40102(2) or in the
activities defined in section 40102(3);
(E) a customs broker licensed in accordance with
section 111.2 of title 19, Code of Federal Regulations,
only to the extent that the customs broker is engaging
in a movement under a customs bond or in a transaction
involving customs business, as defined by section 111.1
of title 19, Code of Federal Regulations; or
(F) a motor carrier registered under chapter 139 of
title 49, United States Code.
(2) Covered motor carrier.--The term ``covered motor
carrier'' means a motor carrier or a household goods motor
carrier (as such terms are defined in section 13102 of title
49, United States Code) that is subject to Federal motor
carrier financial responsibility and safety regulations.
(3) Household goods.--The term ``household goods'' has the
meaning given the term in section 13102 of title 49, United
States Code.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Transportation.
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