FMCSA Seeks to Delay Electronic Database for CDL Driver Information Sharing

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is seeking a two-year delay for compliance with certain provisions in the Entry Level Driver Training rule. Delay of the provisions that are part of a 2016 final rule is designed to allow more time for development of the secure electronic transfer of CDL training information to the certified training provider registry and state driver licensing agencies. The proposed two-year extension would delay the date by which CDL training providers must begin uploading driver training certification information into the FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry (TPA). The TPA is an electronic database that will contain entry level driver training information that is accessible to state licensing agencies and the FMCSA. The TPA is important to petroleum marketers because it is designed to speed up the training and licensure of new entry level drivers.

In addition, the FMCSA is proposing to provide additional time to complete development of the electronic interface that will receive, store and transmit CDL training certification from training providers to state driver licensing agencies. The delay is being sought to give state driver licensing agencies sufficient time to modify their information technology systems and procedures to accommodate their receipt of driver-specific ELDT data from the training provider registry, the agency said. The compliance date for the two provisions of the 2016 final rule have been extended from Feb. 7, 2020, to Feb. 7, 2022. The FMCSA said it does not propose any other substantive changes to the requirements established by the 2016 ELDT final rule, and that new drivers would still have to comply with the final ELDT rule’s training requirements beginning on Feb. 7, 2020.