Washington – A notice of proposed rulemaking (.pdf file) published Nov. 13 would enable the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to suspend or revoke the authority of commercial motor vehicle carriers that egregiously disregard safety, hire individuals who egregiously disregard safety, begin operating under a new name to avoid penalties or commit a serious enough pattern of violations.

According to the NPRM, FMCSA’s Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee issued recommendations in June 2011 for determining which carriers would apply under this proposed rulemaking, including how many violations need to have occurred, what constitutes a pattern of violations, and how long and how often the carrier should be found committing violations before taking action.

Comments on the NPRM are due Jan. 14.