FMCSA has issued a Regional Emergency Declaration providing temporary hours-of-service (HOS) relief for certain motor carriers and drivers due to severe winter storms and extreme cold impacting multiple states.
This waiver supports urgent winter emergency response while maintaining overall safety. Apply relief only to qualifying emergency operations and be sure to review the full waiver which can be found here.
Who Is Covered
Motor carriers and drivers providing direct assistance to emergency relief efforts in the affected states.
States Affected
AL, AR, CO, CT, DE, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, MD, MA, MI, MS, MN, MO, MT, NE, NH, NJ, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WV, WI, WY
What Relief Is Granted
Temporary relief from:
- 49 CFR § 395.3 – Property-carrying vehicle driving limits
- 49 CFR § 395.5 – Passenger-carrying vehicle driving limits
Relief applies regardless of trip origin, as long as the operation supports emergency relief in the affected states.
What Counts as Direct Assistance
Transportation or services supporting the immediate restoration of essential supplies or services during the emergency.
Does NOT include
- Routine commercial deliveries
- Mixed loads with nominal emergency supplies
- Long-term recovery or infrastructure repair after the emergency phase
Key Restrictions
- All other FMCSRs remain in effect, including CDL, drug and alcohol testing, insurance, HAZMAT, and size/weight requirements.
- Out-of-service drivers or carriers are NOT eligible until the order is officially lifted.
- When emergency assistance ends, normal HOS rules apply, with required rest breaks before resuming standard operations.
Duration
Effective January 23, 2026, through February 6, 2026, or until the emergency ends, whichever comes first. FMCSA may modify, extend, or terminate the declaration based on conditions
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/dot-to-use-ai-to-go-after-illegal-truckers?oly_enc_id=0240A1895612I0U
Mark Schremmer
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s soft launch of its new registration system, Motus, is underway.
However, no action is required from motor carriers at this time. Instead, the initial phase – which FMCSA said went live on Monday, Dec. 8 – is limited to transportation service providers, BOC-3 filers and financial responsibility filers. Instructions for those supporting companies can be found here.
“(Those entities) now have limited access to the system to create their user and business profiles,” FMCSA wrote in an email. “This will allow them to prepare to support registrants when the system opens for all users in 2026.”
Starting next year, FMCSA plans to open the new system to all users, including motor carriers.
The agency said it will provide additional instructions about how to access and use the system as the new year approaches.
FMCSA said the goal of Motus is to “streamline processes, enhance fraud prevention and provide a more intuitive, user-friendly experience for supporting companies, motor carriers, brokers and other registrants.”
When Motus launches for all users, it will not include the introduction of safety registration, the elimination of docket numbers or changes to the BOC-3 form filing process, according to the FMCSA website. Rather, those potential changes are under consideration and will be open for public comment in a notice of proposed rulemaking. According to the latest regulatory agenda, FMCSA is projected to unveil that proposal in March 2026.
What about the broker financial responsibility rule?
If you recall, the compliance date for FMCSA’s broker financial responsibility rule was set for early 2025. However, the agency said its new registration wasn’t ready to support the rule, which suspends a broker’s authority if the available financial security falls below $75,000.
That led FMCSA to delay the compliance date until Jan. 16, 2026. FMCSA’s announcement that it is making progress on the new registration system should increase the chances that the rule will take effect on schedule.
Land Line Media
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s long-anticipated new registration system is about to launch.
Called Motus, the new system aims to “streamline processes, enhance fraud prevention and provide a more intuitive, user-friendly experience for supporting companies, motor carriers, brokers and other registrants.”
According to a news release from FMCSA issued on Wednesday, Dec. 3, Motus will begin with a soft launch next week before becoming open to all registrants in 2026. The initial launch will be limited to transportation service providers, BOC-3 filers and financial responsibility filers.
The road toward a new system has been a long one as FMCSA’s Ken Riddle discussed the rollout at the Mid-America Trucking Show in March 2024. At that time, Riddle said a lot of the motivation for change stemmed from a surge in fraud.
“Fraud and freight theft are at an all-time high in the commercial motor vehicle industry,” Riddle said. “Every corner of the industry is experiencing fraud, whether it be on the carrier side, the broker side … We’ve been asked, ‘What can you do, FMCSA?’”
What’s next?
When Motus launches for all users, it will not include the introduction of safety registration, the elimination of docket numbers or changes to the BOC-3 form filing process, according to the FMCSA website. Rather, those potential changes are under consideration and will be open for public comment in a notice of proposed rulemaking. According to the latest regulatory agenda, FMCSA is projected to until that proposal in March 2026.
FMCSA says some of Motus’ features will include:
- Consolidation of FMCSA forms into a single online system
- Easily accessible company account pages to manage user and business information
- Enhanced user roles to engage the right people at the right time
- All regulated entities will continue to be identified by a USDOT Number
- Suffixes at the end of the USDOT Number will indicate each type of registration granted
- Auto-population tools, real-time validation, smart logic, edit checks and notifications
- Mobile devices and tablets can be used to view and update registration information on the go
- New identity verification software and user roles to protect and control system access
- New business verification and information edit checks to validate key information
- The system will support automated, secure processes for users to conduct business electronically
FMCSA’s announcement that Motus is about to launch should be a good sign that the agency’s broker financial responsibility rule will take effect early next year.
Under the new rule, which is set to take effect on Jan. 16, 2026, brokers, freight forwarders and financial responsibility providers will need to comply with new broker security regulations, including the suspension of operating authority if the available financial security falls below $75,000.
The original compliance date was set for 2025, but FMCSA delayed it for a year because the new registration system wasn’t ready.
FMCSA didn’t immediately respond to Land Line’s questions about whether or not the registration system will be ready to maintain the Jan. 16, 2026, compliance date.
Each year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) releases a “Top 10” list of the most frequently cited safety and health standards, a barometer of where employers most commonly fall short in protecting workers. For the fiscal 2025 year, the latest data reveals that many of the familiar “usual suspects” remain on the list, with Fall Protection (29 CFR 1926.501) once again dominating the rankings. For safety managers, compliance officers, and business leaders, understanding which standards attract the most citations will help provide a roadmap for prioritizing corrective action, allocating training resources, and reducing costly penalties. In this article, we dig into the top 10 OSHA standards cited in 2025 and offer insight on how to avoid becoming a statistic.
Top Ten Cited OSHA Standards:
Preliminary data that was recently revealed during the 2025 NSC Safety Congress & Expo shows that many familiar compliance issues persist, reminding us that there’s still work to do to improve safety across all industries. From fall hazards to machine guarding, these are the top 10 most frequently cited OSHA workplace standards that made headlines below for 2025:
- Fall Protection– standard 1926.501, with 5,914 total violations.
- Hazard Communication– standard 1910.1200, with 2,546 total violations.
- Ladders– standard 1926.1053, with 2,405 total violations.
- Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout)– standard 1910.147, with 2,177 total violations.
- Respiratory Protection– standard 1910.134, with 1,953 total violations.
- Fall Protection– Training Requirements-Standard 1926.503, with 1,907 total violations.
- Scaffolding– standard 1926.451, with 1,905 total violations.
- Powered Industrial Trucks– standard 1910.178, with 1,826 total violations.
- Personal Protective and Lifesaving Equipment– eye and Face Protection-standard 1926.102, with 1,665 total violations.
- Machine Guarding– standard 1910.212, with 1,239 total violations.
How to Avoid Getting Cited?
Avoiding these common citations starts with a proactive approach to safety. Here are a few practical steps to help keep your workplace compliant and your employees protected.
Stay informed: Keep up with the latest OSHA regulations and safety guidelines to stay ahead of potential risks. Staying current allows you to spot hazards early and take corrective action before they escalate.
Train your employees: Make sure all workers receive thorough, job-specific safety training. Well-trained employees are better equipped to recognize and avoid workplace hazards.
Conduct regular safety inspections: Schedule routine inspections to proactively identify unsafe conditions or practices. Addressing issues promptly helps prevent accidents and citations.
Provide proper personal protective equipment (PPE): Ensure every employee has the right PPE for their tasks, such as hard hats, gloves, safety glasses, or hearing protection and that they use it consistently.
Encourage hazard reporting: Foster open communication by urging employees to report potential hazards without fear of reprisal. Early reporting helps you correct risks before they cause harm.
Build a culture of safety: Make safety part of your company’s DNA. Lead by example, recognize safe behavior, and involve employees in identifying and solving safety challenges.
By following these tips, employers can help reduce the risk of OSHA violations and create a safer workplace for their employees.
