Facing Suits, FMCSA Acts to Update Safety Databases

This story appears in the Dec. 9 print edition of Transport Topics.

Facing two lawsuits over the accuracy of its driver safety database, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said it will make it easier soon for trucking companies and drivers who want to clear their records of citations that have been dismissed in court.

Under the proposal, disclosed in a Dec. 2 notice posted in the Federal Register, the agency’s Motor Carrier Management Information System and a related state database management system will be modified so that they can reflect results of violations that have been dismissed or reduced to a lesser charge in state or local courts.

The Motor Carrier Management Information System contains a record of roadside inspections by state and local authorities and is used in a number of FMCSA programs, including Compliance, Safety, Accountability and the Pre-Employment Screening Program. Citations affect the operators’ Safety Measurement System scores.

But if drivers can show that a citation issued — after the change takes effect — was dismissed, the violation would be cleared from FMCSA’s databases, according to the agency. Safety scores also would be changed to reflect convictions on lesser charges. FMCSA defines convictions to include cases in which drivers paid a fine or penalty, even when charges were dismissed, according to the proposal.

As for the lawsuits, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association sued FMCSA on behalf of five drivers who were denied requests to have dismised tickets removed from their Motor Carrier Management Information System profile. OOIDA’s attorneys have asked a federal court to rule that FMCSA must remove any violations that are dismissed in court.

Both lawsuits are pending while a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit determines the appropriate court of jurisdiction. Judges heard arguments Dec. 5 on that issue in a lawsuit involving a Florida-based driver.

State officials enforce motor carrier laws through a federal grant program and enter violation data into a system maintained by FMCSA. Motor carriers and drivers can petition FMCSA through its “DataQs” system if they think a violation on their record is incorrect. Those requests are forwarded to the states where the violation took place, but there has been inconsistency in how appeals are handled.

Some states automatically remove a record when there is no conviction, according to FMCSA. The agency’s guidance to state analysts has been to “exercise discretion and good judgment” in reviewing court records to determine if the record should be changed.

The new directive the agency proposed would remove that discretion from the states when a request has been made and require them to upload the results from the adjudication.

One of OOIDA’s lawsuits stemmed from a Florida-based trucker and OOIDA member ticketed in Montana for skipping a weigh station. The ticket was dismissed in court, but when the driver filed a request to have it removed from his federal record, FMCSA delegated the decision to the Montana Department of Transportation, which denied it.

The second lawsuit was filed on behalf of commercial drivers, who were denied requests to have their records cleared of citations from Texas, Arizona, Maryland and Iowa, court documents say.

The cases have significant implications for the motor carrier industry, said Paul Cullen Sr., OOIDA’s attorney. “What happens if all of these records of nonserious violations are thrown out? Then motor carriers should have their safety ratings adjusted,” he said. In a letter to the appellate court, he said FMCSA’s plan to update the DataQs guidance to states is not a rule or regulation, and therefore lacks the “force and effect of law.”

FMCSA’s proposal only applies to citations issued after the change takes effect, so it would not apply to records already in the system.

While the change is a “step forward,” FMCSA’s proposal would be more equitable if they’d “find a way to address the adjudication of citations retroactively,” said Sean Garney, manager of safety policy for American Trucking Associations.

FMCSA said retroactively applying the change would overwhelm data analysts. “Such a drain on state DataQs staffs could prevent states from promptly acting on other RDR requests and/or could create a need to redirect scarce state resources from roadside enforcement, adversely affecting motor carrier safety enforcement,” it said.

Mark Pennak, a Justice Department lawyer representing FMCSA, said in an interview that driver violations are no longer reported to the system after three years.

FMCSA is seeking public comment on the prospective manner in which the change would apply. The deadline is Jan. 2.