FMCSA Lowers 2019 Unified Carrier Registration Fees Due to Past Year Overcollection

Unified Carrier Registration fees for trucking companies, brokers and freight forwarders are going down for 2019.The UCR applies to petroleum marketers operating cargo tank vehicles across state lines to deliver fuel. The fees are being reduced in order to not exceed the total amount collected nationwide as set by Congress. Under the UCR Plan and Agreement, the maximum amount of revenues that can be collected from carriers is established at $107.78 million. Fees collected in 2017 exceeded this maximum by $7.3 million. The fee reductions for 2019 and 2020 are to ensure registration fees don’t exceed the maximum in the next two years. UCR fees will increase in 2020 from 2019, but still stay below levels from 2010-2018.

UCR requires individuals or companies that operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate or international commerce, or individuals or companies that make arrangements for the transportation of cargo and goods, to register their businesses and pay an annual fee based on the size of their fleet. UCR applies to CMVs with a gross vehicle weight (GVW) or gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 10,001 pounds or more or is used to transport hazardous materials in a quantity that requires placarding. Motor carriers, motor private carriers, freight forwarders, leasing companies, and brokers based in the United States, Canada, Mexico, or any other country that operate in interstate or international commerce in the United States must register under the UCR program. For for-hire carriers, UCR replaced the Single State Registration System (SSRS) program. SSRS was not renewed for 2007. The UCR program is similar to SSRS in that UCR is a Base-State system, under which a carrier pays UCR fees to one state on behalf of all participating states.

Please see the following UCR fees for the next two years, compared to previous fees:

More information is available at: https://www.ucr.gov.