SUBCHAPTER BÐFEDERAL MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY REGULATIONS PART 350ÐCOMMERCIAL MOTOR Basic grant means the funds available CARRIER SAFETY ASSISTANCE to a State for carrying out an approved PROGRAM State Enforcement Plan (SEP), which include, but are not limited to: Sec. (1) Recruiting and training of person- 350.1 Purpose. nel, payment of salaries and fringe ben- 350.3 Definitions. efits, the acquisition and maintenance 350.5 Policy. of equipment except those at fixed 350.7 Objective. weigh scales for the purposes of weight 350.9 Conditions for basic grant approval. enforcement, and reasonable overhead 350.11 Adopting and enforcing compatible costs needed to operate the program; laws and regulations. (2) Commencement and conduct of 350.13 State Enforcement Plan (SEP) for a expanded systems of enforcement; basic grant. 350.15 Certification of compliance by State. (3) Establishment of an effective out- 350.17 Maintenance of effort. of-service and compliance enforcement 350.19 Grant application submission. system; and 350.21 Distribution of funds. (4) Retraining and replacing staff and 350.23 Acceptance of State plan. equipment. 350.25 Effect of failure to submit a satisfac- Commercial motor vehicle means any tory State plan. self-propelled or towed vehicle used on 350.27 Procedure for withdrawal of approval. 350.29 Eligible costs. the public highways in commerce to transport passengers or property when: APPENDIX A TO PART 350ÐGUIDELINES TO BE USED IN PREPARING STATE ENFORCEMENT (1) The vehicle has a gross vehicle PLAN weight rating or gross combination APPENDIX B TO PART 350ÐFORM OF STATE weight rating of 10,001 or more pounds; CERTIFICATION or APPENDIX C TO PART 350ÐTOLERANCE GUIDE- (2) The vehicle is designed to trans- LINES FOR ADOPTING COMPATIBLE STATE port more than 15 passengers, including RULES AND REGULATIONS the driver; or AUTHORITY: 49 U.S.C. 31101±31104, 31108, (3) The vehicle is used in the trans- 31136, 31140±31141, 31161, 31310±31311, 31502; and portation of hazardous materials in 49 CFR 1.48. quantities requiring placarding under SOURCE: 57 FR 40956, Sept. 8, 1992, unless regulations issued by the Secretary of otherwise noted. Transportation pursuant to the author- ity of the Hazardous Material Trans- § 350.1 Purpose. portation Act, as amended (49 U.S.C. The purpose of this part is to pre- app. 1801 et seq.). scribe requirements for Federal assist- Compatible or compatibility means, in ance to States for programs to adopt relation to State laws and regulations and enforce Federal rules, regulations, pertaining to commercial motor vehi- standards and orders applicable to cle safety, having the same effect as commercial motor vehicle safety or the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regu- compatible State rules, regulations, lations (FMCSR) or Federal Hazardous standards and orders. Materials Regulations (FHMR) in that those State rules are either identical § 350.3 Definitions. or fall within the tolerance guidelines As used in this part: in appendix C to this part. Administrator means the Federal Motor carrier has the same meaning Highway Administrator. such term has in § 390.5. Basic allocation means only those State means a State of the United Federal funds distributed by the alloca- States, the District of Columbia, the tion formula, or the minimum funding Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the level specified in this part. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, 581 VerDate 23<NOV>98 13:41 Dec 03, 1998 Jkt 179205 PO 00000 Frm 00575 Fmt 8010 Sfmt 8010 Y:\SGML\179202T.XXX pfrm08 PsN: 179202T § 350.5 49 CFR Ch. III (10±1±98 Edition) Guam, or the Commonwealth of the FHWA, will serve as the basis for mon- Northern Marianas. itoring and evaluating performance of the State under the grant, and will be [57 FR 40956, Sept. 8, 1992, as amended at 60 FR 38743, July 28, 1995] resubmitted, with revisions as nec- essary, in applications for reapproval § 350.5 Policy. in following years. The Federal Highway Administration (c) The SEP shall designate the lead (FHWA) policy is to encourage each State agency responsible for admin- State to enforce uniform motor carrier istering the plan for the State. safety and hazardous materials regula- (d) The agencies named to perform tions for both interstate and intrastate functions under the plan shall have the motor carriers and drivers. The re- legal authority, resources, and quali- quirements for compliance with safety fied personnel necessary to enforce the standards in one State should be com- FMCSR and FHMR or compatible State patible with the requirements in an- rules at the time the State implements other State. A coordinated program of the approved SEP. inspection and enforcement activities (e) The State shall allocate adequate is needed to avoid duplication of effort, funds for the administration of the to promote compliance with uniform SEP and the enforcement of the safety requirements by all types of FMCSR and FHMR or compatible State motor carriers, and to provide a basis rules. for sanctioning carriers for poor safety (f) State laws shall provide for right performance. of entry and inspection adequate to carry out the SEP and provide that the § 350.7 Objective. State will grant maximum reciprocity The objective of the Motor Carrier for inspections conducted pursuant to Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP) is the North American Uniform Driver/ to reduce the number and severity of Vehicle Inspection standard, through accidents and hazardous materials inci- the use of a nationally accepted system dents involving commercial motor ve- allowing ready identification of pre- hicles by substantially increasing the viously inspected commercial motor level and effectiveness of enforcement vehicles. activity and the likelihood that safety (g) The State shall certify that it will defects, driver deficiencies and unsafe maintain its aggregate expenditure of carrier practices will be detected and funds by the State and political sub- corrected. divisions thereof, exclusive of Federal funds, for commercial motor vehicle § 350.9 Conditions for basic grant ap- safety programs and related programs proval. eligible for funding under this part, as (a) The State shall agree to adopt, required by § 350.17 of this part. and to assume responsibility for en- (h) The State shall agree to prepare forcing the Federal Motor Carrier Safe- and submit all reports required in con- ty Regulations (FMCSR) (49 CFR parts nection with the SEP or other condi- 390 through 399, except as may be de- tions of the grant to the FHWA upon termined by the Administrator to be request. inapplicable to a State enforcement (i) The lead State agency shall agree program) including highway related to adopt such uniform reporting re- portions of the Federal Hazardous Ma- quirements and use such uniform forms terials Regulations (FHMR) (49 CFR to record work activities performed parts 107, 171±173, 177, 178 and 180), or under the SEP as may be established compatible State rules, regulations, and required by the FHWA. standards, and orders applicable to (j) The State shall require registrants motor carrier safety, including high- of commercial motor vehicles to de- way transportation of hazardous mate- clare, at the time of registration, rials. knowledge of the FMCSR and FHMR or (b) The State shall submit a State compatible State rules, as applicable. Enforcement Plan (SEP) for the con- (k) The statutory authority of the duct of an effective safety program. State to regulate motor carriers shall Such plan, upon acceptance by the extend to private motor carriers of 582 VerDate 23<NOV>98 13:41 Dec 03, 1998 Jkt 179205 PO 00000 Frm 00576 Fmt 8010 Sfmt 8010 Y:\SGML\179202T.XXX pfrm08 PsN: 179202T Federal Highway Administration, DOT § 350.11 property as well as for-hire motor car- lations, standards, or orders in relation riers. to the FMCSR and FHMR. (l) The State shall ensure that com- (c) State laws and regulations per- mercial motor vehicle size and weight taining to commercial motor vehicle enforcement, drug interdiction, and safety in interstate commerce are also traffic enforcement activities funded subject to preemption under the provi- under this program will not diminish sions of § 355.25 of this chapter. the effectiveness of other commercial (d) State laws and regulations that motor vehicle safety enforcement pro- are not identical to the FMCSR or grams. FHMR will be deemed compatible for (m) The State shall take appropriate purposes of this part only if they are steps to ensure that fines imposed and within the variances permitted under collected by the State for violations the tolerance guidelines in appendix C will be reasonable and appropriate and, of this part. to the maximum extent practicable, (e) No State shall implement any will seek to implement into law and changes to a State law or regulation practice the recommended fine sched- which makes that or any other law or ule published by the Commercial Vehi- regulation incompatible under this sec- cle Safety Alliance. tion. (n) The State will participate in the SAFETYNET no later than January 1, (f) As soon as practical after the ef- 1994. fective date of any amendment to the (o) The State will undertake efforts FMCSR or FHMR, but no longer than to emphasize and improve enforcement three years, the applicable State law or of State and local traffic laws as they regulation must be adopted or amended pertain to commercial motor vehicle in such manner as makes it compatible safety. with the amended Federal provision. (p) The State will ensure comprehen- (g) Any State may apply for a vari- sive enforcement and reinspection of ance related to State laws, regulations vehicles and drivers placed out of serv- or enforcement practices pertaining to ice to verify compliance with lawful or- commercial motor vehicle safety in ders and the correction of all violations intrastate commerce, which shall be cited on roadside inspection reports.