Every FMCSA rule that matters.

Effective January 16, 2025, FMCSA's final rule on broker financial responsibility requires that any time a surety or trust makes a claim payment against a broker's $75,000 security, the broker must replenish the security to the full $75,000 within 7 business days. If the broker does not, FMCSA will suspend the broker's authority. The rule also requires sureties to notify FMCSA within 7 business days of any claim payment. This rule is a substantive tightening of broker-bond oversight after a decade of industry pressure.

Throughout 2025-2026 FMCSA has worked with state agencies to restrict issuance of non-domiciled CDLs to foreign nationals without lawful permanent resident status or valid work authorization. The rule, implemented through a mix of FMCSA policy memoranda and state-level changes, directly affects carriers with large shares of non-domiciled CDL drivers — a segment that has grown substantially since 2020. For brokers, the vetting implication is concrete: a carrier whose roster depends on non-domiciled CDLs now carries operational risk if a driver's license becomes invalid.

Through 2025 and into 2026, FMCSA and state partners have published updated enforcement guidance targeting two widespread ELD workarounds: time-zone clock manipulation (using driver clock changes to extend the 14-hour window) and abuse of the yard-move exemption (logging road miles as on-duty-not-driving). The new guidance specifies thresholds at which these patterns trigger compliance reviews and OOS orders. Data from inspections in Q1 2026 shows substantial increases in 395.8 violations cited for ELD misuse.

Phase 2 of the Clearinghouse (effective November 18, 2024) requires state driver licensing agencies to query the Clearinghouse before issuing, renewing, or transferring a CDL or CLP. Any driver in prohibited status (positive test, refusal, or unresolved) automatically has their CDL privileges downgraded. For carriers, this means drivers with unresolved Clearinghouse records now lose CDL eligibility at the state level — not just employment eligibility federally. Brokers vetting carriers should ask how fleet-wide Clearinghouse compliance is managed.

MCS-150 is the foundational carrier registration form. FMCSA requires every registered carrier to update MCS-150 every two years, with the update window based on the last two digits of the carrier's USDOT number. Carriers who fail to file face deactivation notices and, if unresolved, loss of USDOT registration. For brokers, an outdated MCS-150 filing is one of the strongest red flags — it signals the carrier is not actively maintaining their registration. CarrierBrief flags MCS-150 staleness in every carrier profile.

The short-haul HOS exception (49 CFR 395.1(e)(1)) permits drivers operating within a 150 air-mile radius and returning to the normal work location to skip paper logs and ELD requirements, provided they complete their work within 14 consecutive hours. Enforcement is active, and FMCSA has published guidance clarifying what triggers a carrier out of the exception mid-day (exceeding the radius, exceeding the 14-hour window, or failing to return). Violations in this area grew substantially in 2025 inspection data.

The ELDT rule (effective February 7, 2022, and expanded in subsequent years) requires all entry-level drivers to complete theory and behind-the-wheel training from a training provider listed in FMCSA's Training Provider Registry (TPR) before taking the skills test for a Class A, Class B, or upgrade. This affects carrier hiring pipelines directly — new-to-industry drivers must come through registered training. For brokers, vetting a new carrier involves understanding their driver-acquisition channel: TPR-sourced drivers have documented training; non-TPR drivers may have grandfather status or be from non-compliant programs.

Through 2024-2025, FMCSA published guidance documents on driver-facing AI monitoring systems (companies like Samsara, Motive, Lytx). The guidance clarifies that these systems do not replace the driver's safety obligations and that retention of AI-flagged video is subject to FMCSA record-keeping requirements if it relates to regulated events. Not a mandate, but insurance carriers have begun to price premiums favorably for fleets using AI monitoring. For brokers, this has become a de-facto vetting question: does the carrier use driver-facing monitoring?

The joint NHTSA / FMCSA rule mandates automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems meeting FMVSS 136 on newly manufactured Class 7 and 8 trucks, with manufacturer compliance staged through 2028-2030. FMCSA's companion rule addresses AEB performance maintenance and enforcement once trucks are in service. Carriers replacing tractors after the effective date will receive AEB-equipped units as standard. Insurance industry response has been positive — early data from fleets with retrofit AEB shows 40-60% reduction in rear-end collisions.

The Safety Fitness Determination rule would end the decades-old Compliance Review system and use ongoing SMS (Safety Measurement System) data to determine each carrier's fitness to operate. The practical consequence: a carrier's fitness would be continuously calculated from roadside inspection and crash data, not established only when FMCSA shows up for a compliance review. Industry response has been split — safety advocates favor continuous oversight; OOIDA and smaller carriers argue SMS data has known accuracy issues that would harm small fleets disproportionately. The rule is still under review as of Q2 2026.

The proposed speed limiter rule (jointly FMCSA and NHTSA) would require speed-governing devices on trucks of a certain weight class, limiting maximum speed to a rule-specified threshold (60, 65, or 68 mph have been discussed). Industry opposition — particularly from OOIDA and owner-operators — has been significant. Multiple target dates have passed without finalization, and the rule's status as of Q2 2026 remains in 'proposed' limbo. Brokers and carriers should treat this as a long-tail watch item, not immediate compliance work.