§13908 Registration and Other Reforms

Summary

Creates an online federal registration system called the "Unified Carrier Registration System." The Secretary, working with the states and industry and after public notice and comment, must issue rules for it within 1 year after the date of enactment of the Unified Carrier Registration Act of 2005. The new system replaces the current DOT ID number system, the single-State registration under section 14504, the registration and financial-responsibility systems under this chapter and section 13906, and the service-of-process agent systems under sections 503 and 13304. It will store and identify all foreign and domestic motor carriers, motor private carriers, brokers, freight forwarders, and others who must register. The system will include safety ratings, proof of financial responsibility, and compliance information under section 14504a. Federal and state agencies, industry representatives, and the public must be able to access the system and its records. Within 60 days after the section takes effect, the Secretary must set rules to let carriers fix wrong information. Under section 9701 of title 31, the Secretary must create a fee system. New registrant fees should roughly cover processing costs. The fee to file proof of financial responsibility cannot exceed $10 per filing. No fee is charged to name an agent for service of process or for certain other financial filings. There may be a small fee to access or retrieve data to cover system and administration costs, but federal and state agencies and political subdivisions pay no fee for their own use, and carriers or their reps pay no fee to get their own records. Fees may be credited to the Department of Transportation appropriations account and used for the same purposes until spent. The rule does not force registration for carriers that operate only within one state and are not otherwise required to register.