FMCSA’s entry-level driver training rule moves a step closer to publication

A proposed federal rule set to spell out required minimum training standards for new entrant truck drivers has been sent from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to the White Houses’ Office of Management and Budget for approval. The OMB is the rule’s last stop before publication in the Federal Register.

As this is the proposed version of the rule, the agency will take comment from the trucking industry, stakeholders and the general public for 60 days following the rule’s publication. The rule has not been made public yet, so what it will require of drivers and carriers is not yet known.

The rule was produced via a so-called “negotiated rulemaking,” meaning a committee of drivers, fleets, regulators and other industry stakeholders met several times to flesh out the basic form of the rule before handing it to FMCSA to finalize and put into the regulatory pipeline.

As reported earlier this year by Overdrive, the committee’s key recommendations for the rule included requiring 30 hours of behind-the-wheel training time, establishing a registry of driver training providers and establishing certified curricula for CDL applicants.

The OMB’s rulemaking portal says the White House received the rule Nov. 7. The OMB typically clears rules within 90 days of receiving them. The rule should be published shortly after its clearance by OMB.