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Regulatory Guidance

Welcome to the FMCSA Guidance Portal. This web portal is a searchable, indexed database that contains and links to all guidance documents in effect from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract.

To comment on any guidance document, or to request issuance, reconsideration, modification, or rescission of any guidance document, please identify the guidance document in your request and send it to: FMCSAguidance@dot.gov. NOTE: The FMCSAguidance mailbox is not intended to serve as a mailbox for general inquiries. For inquiries that go beyond the limited purpose of the FMCSAguidance mailbox, please call FMCSA's Information Line (800-832-5660) or visit FMCSA's "Contact Us" page to send your inquiry to the appropriate mailbox.

Subject Agency Identifier Topic Issued Date
Is a person from Puerto Rico required to surrender his or her driver’s license in order to obtain a non-domiciled CDL? FMCSA-CDL-383.21-Q1 Commercial Driver License Standards; Puerto Rico CDL
§380 Appendix – Entry Level Driver Training Guidance Q&A Question 21: Is there a mandatory sequence that the specific theory and behind-the-wheel (BTW) training must be taken in? FMCSA-ELDT-380-Appendix-Q021 Commercial Driver License; Entry level Driver Training
Are rubberized collapsible containers or “bladder bags” attached to a trailer considered a tank vehicle, thus requiring operators to obtain a CDL with a tank vehicle endorsement? FMCSA-CDL-383.5-Q6 Commercial Driver License Standards; Bladder Bags
Must the State use the offense date or the conviction date to determine if two or more serious traffic *8472 convictions occurred within a 3-year period? FMCSA-CDL-383.51-GenQ09 Commercial Driver License Standards; Offense Date vs Conviction Date
May a CDL skills test examiner conduct a driving skills test administered in accordance with part 383 before a person subject to 49 CFR part 382 is tested for alcohol and controlled substances? FMCSA-CDL-383.71-Q1 Commercial Driver License Standards; Driver Application, Skills Testing
Must an operator of a CMV (as defined in § 383.5), who holds a CDL, notify his/her current employer of a conviction for violating a State or local (non-parking) traffic law in any type of motor vehicle, as required by § 383.31(b), even though the convicti FMCSA-CDL-383.31-Q1 Commercial Driver License Standards; Notification of Convictions
May a State (1) require an applicant for a CDL farmer waiver (§ 383.3(d)) to take HM training as a condition for being granted a waiver; and (2) reduce the 150-mile provision in the waiver to 50 miles if the driver is transporting HM? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q18 Commercial Driver License Standards; Farm Vehicles
Do third party skills test examiners have to be qualified to administer skills tests in all types of CMVs? FMCSA-CDL-383.75-Q03 Commercial Driver License Standards; Third Party Testing, type of CMV
Is a person who grows sod as a business considered a farmer and eligible for the farmer waiver? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q23 Commercial Driver License Standards; Farmer Waiver-Sod
May a driver with an air brake restriction on his or her CDL operate a CMV equipped with a hydraulic braking system that has an air-assisted parking brake release? FMCSA-CDL-383.95-Q01 Commercial Driver License Standards; Air Brake Restrictions