MAP-21, or the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (1.3MB PDF), took effect on October 1. Is your Supply Chain compliant?

At 584 pages, this act is a monster. Probably the most relevant to your supply chain and logistics activities is Division C which contains the Transportation Safety and Surface Transportation Policy, which starts on page 328 and ends on page 440, which contains the Motor Vehicle and Highway Safety Improvement Act, the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act, the Hazardous Materials Transportation Safety Improvement Act, and the Sport Fish Restoration and Recreational Boating Safety Act of 2012, with the first three being the most relevant.

In these acts, the most obvious sections of interest are 31206 that define increased penalties for odometer fraud, 31207 that extends prohibitions on importing non-compliant vehicles and equipment to defective vehicles and equipment, 31208 on the conditions on importation of vehicles and equipment and 31209 on port inspections in subtitle B of the Motor Vehicle and Highway Safety Improvement Act; 31307 on whistleblower protections of subtitle C of the Motor Vehicle and Highway Safety Improvement Act; 32107 on increased penalties for operating without registration and 32109 and 32110 on revocation of registration for imminent hazards and failure to respond to subpoena of subtitle A of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act; 32203 on state reporting of foreign commercial driver convictions, 32204 on the authority to disqualify foreign commercial drivers, and 32205 on the revocation of foreign motor carrier operating authority for failure to pay civil penalties of subtitle B of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act; 32302 on driver medical qualifications and 32304 on commercial motor vehicle operator training of subtitle C of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act; 32504 on impoundment and immobilization of commercial motor vehicles for imminent hazard and 32505 on increased penalties for evasion of regulations of subtitle E of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act; 32915 on additional motor carrier registration requirements, 32918 on financial security of brokers and freight forwarders, and 32921 on additional registration requirements for household goods motor carriers of subtitle I of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act; and 33010 on civil penalties of the Hazardous Materials Transportation Safety Improvement Act.

This, of course, isn’t an exhaustive list of items that you need to be aware of as a broker or carrier, but just a starting one. For example, in 31105 on National Priority Safety Programs, which amends section 405 of title 23 of the United States Code, there is a section on distracted driving grants that authorizes the secretary to award a grant to any state that prohibits texting while driving and youth cell phone use while driving. This is likely going to result in (additional) cash-strapped states banning texting and (youth) cell phone use while driving. (So you better have a policy in place preventing your drivers from texting behind the wheel if you don’t already!)

So what is relevant in the sections of interest? Stay Tuned for Part II.