For decades, the two political parties that compete for power and influence have grown further apart.

I am thankful to live in a country where you can chose to support this party or that. Freedom is wonderful.

Regardless which party you support, I think we can all agree the party that has recently taken charge of our government believes in FEWER rules.

That impacts everyone who lives in this country, but it is my job to think and communicate about how it impacts people in a business that involves use of commercial motor vehicles.

So what does this mean to us?
Well, some changes have been planned and announced years ago, and might come to pass very soon. Things like Automatic Emergency Braking Systems (AEBS).

And things like mandatory speed limiters on commercial motor vehicles.

And maybe a new approach to enforcement of the requirement that all CMV operators speak and read the English language.

The first thing I’m convinced of is, the MC number will go away in a few months. (1 October, 2025). I don’t think this is going to make ANYone’s job harder. A little easier, I guess, but not a HUGE deal.

The next one I’m sure is going to happenBeginning on June 23, 2025 is, Medical Examiners will start posting the results of DOT physicals to the FMCSA – the FMCSA will then notify the state driver’s license agencies.

This will alleviate a burden we have been dealing with for several years.

The one I’m not so sure about is the whole English-speaking requirement and it’s enforcement.

The law has never changed, but like a lot of laws in our country, we seem almost to have made a decision not to enforce it. I believe that is coming to an end.
I guess there have been a number of fatalities tied to drivers who simply cannot read street signs.

I could be wrong; I think this is the reason for the new mood on the topic.

I’m going to borrow a paragraph from a recent article in Freightwaves; I don’t think they will mind, after all I’m giving them credit. And I’ll provide a shortcut to the whole article:

“What this means for drivers and fleets: Drivers should self-reflect, determine their level of English proficiency and seek necessary training. Fleets may need to provide language support or resources to ensure compliance for current drivers. For driver applicants, fleets need to determine objective guidelines for ensuring hired drivers are proficient.”https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fmcsa-rule-updates-for-2025-and-what-fleets-need-to-know

No one knows, today, exactly how this is going to impact us.

What we do know is, the FMCSA has still never come up with a definition of what it means to speak and read English well enough. 

There are some other changes a-brewing, but maybe I’ll get into those in a future email message.

For now, I just want to leave you all with a reminder that 99% of the rules have never really changed, just the enforcement mechanisms.

If you have a good system, keep it up.

If you don’t have a good system, shape up.

If you are not sure, and you would like me to help you improve your safety management controls, contact us; we can probably help you.

The question I’ll leave you all with is this; Are you prepared for a Compliance Review?
If you aren’t sure, call us. We can help.

Sincerely,

Mike England

Senior Safety Consultant

DOT Compliance Help, Inc.

phone 847-836-6063