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| UCR Board Mtg Oct 4 Summary |
| Much of this meeting was directed toward lessons learned now that the national registration system is being used -- some glitches fixed while others still pending.
FMCSA rep reported their staff continues to work and address issues that Congress did not anticipate. They will continue to work closely with UCR Board on any new issues that come up. FMCSA also reported that early next week the 2008 fee structure will move to the next approval level.. Indiana rep (Sandy Bowling) reported the electronic “feed” between FMCSA and UCR systems is still being testing. Indiana has not received any updates from FMCSA since mid-August so that may explain why permit agents are having a difficult time with some registrations. Any new carriers are not yet in Indiana’s system. Industry needs to make sure the principal place of business for carriers is accurate on MCS-150. It’s important to have accurate information because the UCR registration fee goes to the state listed on carrier’s record. If you receive an error message that your carrier does not exist, it’s probably because you have entered an intrastate DOT#, registrant DOT#, brand new DOT# or carrier is inactive. If you recently made changes online or via fax to the carrier’s DOT#, please remember the corrected data has not transferred to IN yet. The information populates from Safer and MICMUS, keeping in mind these systems were designed for reporting safety issues. UCR is using this database for other purposes. They are working to come up with another indicator within MICMUS for leasing companies. If you have any leasing companies to register – just put those aside for now! IN registration system works only with Internet Explorer (do not use Firefox). Several “bugs” were discovered during the first week of registrations: Double Charges: Some were charged double payments via credit card. This does not affect the information in the UCR system. Possible cause was the person may have hit “button” again causing a duplication of payment. Refunds are forth coming, if you experienced double billing. Some electronic checks also had glitches as the system was set to accept ten digits and often more than ten were necessary on carrier’s account. Most participating states are using the Indiana system. The states that are using their own system are AL, IL, IA, ME, MT, ND and VA. Note the first priority is transferring data to/from FMCSA and Indiana. Once this upload is successful, the electronic feed between FMCSA and above states will be programmed. “Undeliverable mail” has been approximately 20 to 30%. Some states are using online sources such as switchboard.com and yellowpages.com to locate new addresses for those carriers whose addresses are wrong in the DOT database. These returns were anticipated because the 2007 fee structure was set based upon 50% return. Many state FMCSA directors will pursue options to identify companies where mail is returned. Industry can help by listing carrier’s mailing address in the DOT system. Indiana reps still working on getting the system to access Canadian credit cards – they just aren’t sure how much longer before this problem is solved. Please suggest the Canadian carrier use an e-check in the interim. Most states did report that enforcement for 2007 registration will begin November 15. Some (perhaps) will issue a courtesy warning. It’s more probable the violation will appear during an audit in 2008. The UCR Board is working on the Qs and As document which will incorporate many unusual questions/answers relevant to UCR registration. A lot of calls with questions on these topics are coming in… -- The definition of “commercial motor vehicle” causing some confusion throughout industry. -- Farmers and private carriers who haven’t had to pay before but who are required to register now if they operate in interstate. Sorry, but no update was given on when permit agents can receive a user name/password for group processing vs individual carrier processing. It’s very likely the discovered bugs have delayed the testing on this option. Next UCR Board meetings: Nov 1 (phone); Dec 6 (phone); Jan 14/15 (Clearwater, FL) |
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*** Questions about this info? Contact Linda Norman at 703-821-0000 or linda@donnormanassociates.com *** |