Federal regulators tasked with keeping America’s highways safe appear to have failed to sideline dangerous individuals. A recent probe into the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) shows officials didn’t act decisively to remove drug users and reckless truck drivers despite timely reporting.
The FMCSA rolled out its so-called Clearinghouse reporting database beginning in 2017, with full engagement hitting in January 2020. More than a year later, the digital systems designed to flag drug and alcohol abuse offenders fell short due to human error. A recent Department of Transportation probe spearheaded by its Office of Inspector General uncovered troubling facts. According to a recent report, conviction notifications were not adequately relayed 17 percent of the time, including 2,182 major offenses. The report also indicates that more than 23,000 significant violations were never properly reported. These shortcomings opened the door to unsafe truck drivers getting behind the wheel and moving upwards of 80,000 pounds at high rates of speed.
“While FMCSA has established annual program reviews to monitor state compliance, those reviews have gaps in the oversight of CDL disqualifications,” the inspector’s office reportedly stated. “These weaknesses may limit FMCSA’s ability to keep unsafe CDL drivers off the road and enhance public safety.”
Among the disturbing anecdotal evidence, one worst-case scenario highlights the critical nature of on-time reporting by states and action by the FMCSA. The federal agency reportedly issued an Imminent Hazard Out-of-Service Order for trucker Kalilu Koneh in early July. Sidelining the former CDL-holder demonstrates how vital follow-through is to highway safety. Even the FMCSA’s own website claims that Koneh hasn’t possessed a valid driver’s license in three years. Despite not having any type of license, he worked hauling freight from January through June, even after failing a drug test. Adding insult to injury, he reportedly exceeded the hour-of-service rules.
The FMCSA faces challenges going forward, including an inability to process hard copy reports promptly and several states bucking the Clearinghouse system. Not every state has kept paper logs of incidents, and some allowed truck drivers from other states grace periods to appeal violations and potentially false positive drug tests.
“For example, some states offered administrative appeals to out-of-state drivers, overturned disqualifications, and backdated CDL disqualification periods,” investigators reportedly stated. “As a result, some drivers served shorter disqualification time periods than federal law requires.”
Freight companies are only required to mandate drug and alcohol tests if they witness behavior consistent with impairment.
The Department of Transportation’s independent investigators offered direction on policy and implementation changes to curb unfit drivers from getting behind the wheel. But at the end of the day, the buck stops with administrators working in the state and federal Clearinghouse system.
Source: truckinginfo
more over bearing Federal over reach….states issue licencess ….states enforce those licences FMCSA NEEDS A DOWN SIZE !.
I can’t say that I’m all that surprised.
The FMCSA reporting is a system that circumvents the court system. A driver can be punished and oppressed by FMCSA and never be convicted in court. Those who co-operate with this abominable snitch system are un-American.
Upwards of 80,000 pounds at high rates of speed?…… Sure! Why not?!
Probably doing it while driving on bald tires, three flats and wearing Beets headphones and smoking crack with a hooker on his lap!
Gotta make the guy sound as sensationally dangerous as possible!
I gotta wonder though….. Who do these guys work for (?) and why isn’t FMCSA shutting down those companies that would put these guys in a seat?
Regardless of FMCSA disqualification, I find it hard to believe that ANY trucking company would have one of these guys driving even one day after a failed drug test….
I believe it’s a harsh punishment for DWI . 2 violations in a 25 year period .and you loose your cdl for life. I believe it should be punishment .but this is rediculous. If the violations were in a rig yes.! What do you guys think !
I thank the clearing house shoud be shut down they send out mobel units to do pre employment drug test your not even working but they find a little thc in pee then you can’t work till you pay them hundred s of dallers an if you don’t they take your cdl till you do I thank it shoud be shut down
You don’t drive if you feel a drug test . And will say probably 98 percent of truckers does follow the rules of a safe truck driver. The law and the society always trying to make truckers look bad , So for all you judging us truckers go fly a kite .
You don’t drive if you feel a drug test . And will say probably 98 percent of truckers does follow the rules of a safe truck driver. The law and the society always trying to make truckers look bad
I totally agree with you on this…
The company’s are in need of drivers and they are not getting the right information for the fmcsa. Then there the company’s who don’t care they just need their freight delivered. So we are back to the old days we’re driver could run three log books due little white pills to stay awake. That doesn’t make the rest of us look good to the people out there . That a black eye on us all
I wonder if I appear impaired when I’m dodging all these big potholes and craters and strip holes in the rd directly in the tire path. I wonder. Cause semis are very expensive to repair I refuse to keep tearing my truck up so ima be a lil swervey at times I wonder if dot is trained to recognize that. I think these guys keep on messing with truckers cause it takes the attention away from dot squandering billions of infrastructure funds by taking decades to repair the bridges and roads. It makes it seem as if they are doing something and they are not.
If you people are so scared of us truck drivers why don’t you just go to are loading docks the boating docks the rail road unloading docks and the airports and they’re unloading docks and you get your own damn stuff I am still waiting for people to educate people who drive on the highway and share the damn highway with us truck drivers and us who ride motorcycles you have yet to achieve that you rather point your finger at us truck drivers and say we’re the unsafe unprofessional and look at the bad motorcycle riders and say we’re speeding reckless jerks but the whole time people driving cars are driving recklessly and nobody gives a damn so FMCA can stick it I’m tired of federal laws they only go one way have one side and all of it is to collect money there’s no safety in it
Exactly
Also you have organizations like ATA working with FMSCA and against us drivers and owner operators.
They also fail to take down illegal running companies that get turned in. They don’t even investigate at all.
The trucking industry destroyed its self when they destroyed the trucking industry back in the 80s. It was a good job until they turned it into a horrible job. Now they wonder why nobody wants to do it or they can’t attract good people. Low pay horrible working conditions what do you expect.
The FMCSA is nothing but a group of brainless pencil pushers that are tearing this industry to pieces. They take money from criminal groups like CRASH, ROAD SAFE AMERICA, BOTH ATA’S, the CVSA, IT companies etc to enforce BS laws that do nothing but destroy a lifeblood industry in this country. Until all drivers walk away from this industry for 30 days they will continue to suck you dry with horrible pay, bs taxes, fraudulent hos, crap elds etc.. until your dead. There is no driver shortage. It’s just most good drivers left he industry when the elds came into effect. And after 32 years I’m starting another career shortly. Trucking is the most dangerous it ever has been.
But yet they let Swift Drivers like you back in the seats after 10 crashes
What you do on your home time is your business not the FMCSA. You can get a beer at a truck stop and how many of you go drink? 1-5 drink while in a truck stop but that’s ok.
You have a bunch of dummy in charge of truck drivers that is the fucking problem
Never fail. Only fmcsa can drop the ball. If they had to pretrip there reports maybe they would be a violation ,they make the laws regardless of the state they drive from. Drugs are drugs. Laws are laws. To us not them. Maybe they all to take a dot drug test. SHIT THEY PROVED THEY DONT HAVE ANY GRIP ON REALITY