The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration wants to change its approach to putting together a Unified Registration System, but intends to stick with the key components it already has proposed in this sweeping overhaul of the way it keeps track of the entities it regulates.


The proposal, which has been in the works for more than six years, is one of a family of rules intended to raise the bar to entry into the business and help keep better track of "chameleon" carriers that evade enforcement by re-registering under a different identity.

In a supplemental proposal published in today's Federal Register, the agency said it wants to back away from combining all of the proposed changes in a single document. That's because the registration requirements among diverse businesses such as for-hire and private carriage, brokers and freight forwarders vary widely, the agency said.

But the agency intends to go ahead with its plan to combine the systems that track identification, registration financial responsibility into a single, new online system. All registrants would have to update their information every two years.

In addition, every company registered under the URS would be identified by its Department of Transportation number, although motor carriers would be allowed to use their obsolete MC numbers for business and advertising. Carriers would not have to remove that number from their trucks but the agency will encourage them to do that on new or repainted trucks once the rule is final.

Also, the agency would no longer accept or review requests for transfers of operating authority. And private carriers that haul hazardous materials interstate would have to show that they meet financial requirements.

The agency is accepting comments on this proposal until Dec. 27. It may issue a final rule any time after that.