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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
Do operators of motorized cranes and vehicles used to pump cement at construction sites have to meet the testing and licensing requirements of the CDL program? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q5 Commercial Driver License Standards; Motorized Cranes
Does off-road motorized construction equipment meet the definitions of “motor vehicle” and “commercial motor vehicle” as used in § 383.5 and 49 CFR 390.5? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q4 Commercial Driver License Standards; Off Road Construction Equipment Drivers
Are drivers of double and triple saddle mount combinations required to have the double/triple trailers endorsement on their CDLs? FMCSA-CDL-383.93-Q05 Commercial Driver License Standards; Double and Triple Combinations
§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
Would a tillerman, a person exercising control over the steerable rear axle(s) on a CMV, be considered a driver or a person who operates a CMV and be subject to applicable CDL regulations? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q24 Commercial Driver License Standards; Steerable Rear Axel
Does the definition of a CMV in § 383.5 of the CDL requirements include parking lot and/or street sweeping vehicles and is a driver of such a vehicle required to have a CDL? FMCSA-CDL-383.5-Q3 Commercial Driver License Standards; State Contracts
Part 380 – Entry level Driver Training Guidance Q&A (Q025) FMCSA-ELDT-380-Appendix-Q025 Commercial Driver License; Entry level Driver Training
May a State require persons operating recreational vehicles or other CMVs used by groups of people, including family members, for non-business purposes to have a CDL? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q6 Commercial Driver License Standards; Recreational Drivers
Does a driver of either a tractor trailer or a straight truck that is converted into a mobile office need a CDL? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q7 Commercial Driver License Standards; Converted Mobile Offices
Do the regulations require that a person driving an empty school bus from the manufacturer to the local distributor obtain a CDL? FMCSA-CDL-383.3-Q9 Commercial Driver License Standards; Empty School Bus