About a month remains in a public comment period on a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration proposal to require states establish an annual inspection program for all commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) that carry passengers, including school buses.
Most if not all states already have a school bus inspection program in place, and FMCSA said a motor carrier may satisfy the FMCSR annual inspection requirement through a state or other jurisdiction’s inspection program in accordance with § 396.23(a), provided that the inspection satisfies regulatory requirements.
FMCSA said its Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published last month seeks to assess the risks associated with improperly maintained or inspected passenger-carrying CMVs by reviewing the effectiveness of existing federal inspection standards applicable to these types of vehicles, and considering the costs and benefits of having a mandatory inspection program.
Motor carriers operating in states with a mandatory state inspection requirement that FMCSA has determined to be as effective as inspections under § 396.17 may rely on the state inspection process in order to satisfy the annual inspection requirement.
Comments on Docket Number FMCSA-2014-0470 may be submitted through June 27 at www.regulations.gov.
