1. Office of Highway Safety Motor Carrier Operations

2. 2 Issue Areas FMCSA oversight of passenger carriers Non-FMVSS-compliant vehicles in the United States

3. 3 Issue Areas Motor Carrier Operations - Leasing agreements - Scope of operating authority New Entrant Safety Assurance Program FMVSS compliance and vehicle inspections Vehicle importation Vehicle registration

4. Office of Highway Safety Motor Carrier Operations

5. 5 Capricorn Bus Lines Capricorn was originally Flores Charters and Tours Lost insurance in 2003 due to 2002 fatal accident in Mexico Started Capricorn in February 2004 Operated a “regular route” bus service from Houston, Texas, to Monterrey, Mexico

6. 6 Capricorn Bus Lines Unable to secure insurance coverage June 2005 – leasing agreement with Transportes Chavez for operating authority Met the definition of a passenger motor carrier – 49 CFR 390.5

7. 7 Capricorn Bus Lines 2006 and 2007 – lease agreement with International Charter Services Capricorn was operating in interstate commerce under International’s operating authority and insurance coverage

8. 8 Capricorn Bus Lines International effectively relinquished operational control of Capricorn - Hiring drivers - Maintaining/registering vehicles - Complying will all DOT regulations Capricorn not responsible for post- accident compliance review rating

9. 9 International Charter Services In June 2005, applied for interstate operating authority New Entrant Safety Audit – November 2005 Permanent operating authority – November 2006 Operated one motorcoach

10. 10 Flores Charter and Tours Capricorn Bus Services Company Lease Agreements International Charter Services (U.S. DOT Operating Authority) Lease agreement Operating authority

11. 11 Company Lease Agreements Capricorn - Drivers - Vehicle maintenance - FMCSR Compliance International lost operational control

12. 12 Scope of Operating Authority - Regular Route Service – scheduled bus service over regular routes - Charter and Special Transportation – all other types of bus service Applicants must specify

13. 13 Scope of Operating Authority Capricorn’s mode of operation in violation of International’s authority Capricorn’s bus operation met definition of Regular Route Service International’s scope of authority was Charter and Special Transportation

14. 14 FMCSA Oversight Conducted Compliance Review on International - Unsatisfactory – Driver category - Conditional – Vehicle category - Overall rating – Conditional - Fine – $5,840 - Recommendation H-99-6

15. 15 FMCSA Oversight FMCSA aware of leasing agreement - 49 CFR Part 376 – Leases – applies to cargo carriers only - Capricorn avoided any negative consequences Decreases the effectiveness of FMCSA’s New Entrant vetting process

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17. Office of Highway Safety New Entrant Safety Assurance Program

18. 18 New Entrant Safety Assurance Program Created January 2003 To identify at-risk carriers prior to granting permanent operating authority To identify “reincarnated carriers” - Operate as a new entity - Evade FMCSA enforcement action

19. 19 New Entrant Safety Assurance Program 18-month safety monitoring program Educational material Safety audit Monitoring of roadside inspection and crash data

20. 20 New Entrant Safety Assurance Program - Evasion Detection Algorithm Passenger Carrier Vetting Process (PCVP) - Poorly performing carriers since 2003 - Matched data may result in denied authority

21. 21 Leasing and the Vetting Process July 15, 2008, through August 13, 2009 - 873 applications - 326 proceeding successfully - 101 dismissed - 1 “Show Cause” order - 428 awaiting processing - 17 withdrawn by applicant

22. 22 PCVP Limitations Leasing with existing carrier Shields nonauthorized carrier Circumvents New Entrant vetting data points Current leasing regulations do not apply to passenger carriers

23. 23 PCVP Limitations Evasion Detection Algorithm – only compares applicant carriers to poor carriers back to 2003 Ignores potential reincarnated carriers who may already exist

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25. Office of Highway Safety Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSSs)

26. 26 Non-FMVSS Accident Vehicle Relationship of the FMVSSs to the FMCSRs and vehicle inspections How the accident vehicle was brought into the United States How the accident vehicle obtained U.S. license plates

27. 27 FMVSSs National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act - 1966 49 CFR 571 – Minimum level of safety – FMVSS vehicles only on U.S. Roads

28. 28 FMVSS Certification Vehicle manufacturer must certify This vehicle conforms to all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSSs) in effect on the date of manufacture shown above Certification on or near VIN plate VIN is NOT coded for FMVSS conformity

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31. 31 FMVSSs and Vehicle Inspections Inspections are conducted using CVSA inspection criteria Based on Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations - FMCSRs No inspection criteria for FMVSS compliance certification

32. 32 FMVSSs and Vehicle Inspections Not all FMVSSs included in FMCSRs Many inspection criteria do not incorporate FMVSS verification Designed for operational defect detection, not FMVSS compliance

33. 33 FMVSSs and Vehicle Inspections FMCSA aware of vehicles entering the country that were non-FMVSS compliant FMCSA lacks specific authority to place a vehicle out of service for non-FMVSS compliance

34. 34 FMVSSs and Operating Authority Carrier conditions for granting operating authority U.S. carriers do not have to certify Mexico-domiciled carriers must certify only FMVSS-compliant vehicles Violations can result in vehicle and/or company out-of-service orders

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36. Office of Highway Safety Vehicle Importation

37. 37 Vehicle Importation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — Regulations for the importation of vehicles Customs and Border Protection Agency (CBP) — Regulations for the importation of cargo and processing vehicles

38. 38 Vehicle Importation 49 U.S.C. 30112 A person may not manufacture for sale, sell, offer for sale, introduce or deliver for introduction in interstate commerce, or import into the United States any motor vehicle…unless the vehicle complies with the FMVSS

39. 39 Vehicle Importation Title 19 CFR 12.80(a) entry restrictions A motor vehicle manufactured for sale or importation or use in interstate commerce is not permitted entry into the Customs territory of the United States unless it conformed to FMVSS standards when it was manufactured Hinders enforcement efforts

40. 40 Rulemaking FMCSA and NHTSA 2002 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Define “import” for enforcement purposes Require FMVSS certification statement on all commercial vehicles for enforcement purposes Withdrawn in 2005

41. 41 Accident Vehicle Importation September to December 2007, crossed border 28 times Purchased in Mexico - Mexico registration and plates - Failed to declare for importation

42. 42 Accident Vehicle Importation FMCSA - Had operating authority - No out-of-service violations - FMCSA – no legal authority Should have been denied entry - No declaration by carrier - Used in international trade Customs

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44. Office of Highway Safety Vehicle Registration

45. 45 Vehicle Registration Intrastate registration Interstate registration - International Registration Plan - IRP - United States and Canada - Register in home state - Apportioned plates - Operate in any state or province - Mexico is not part of the IRP

46. 46 Vehicle Registration

47. 47 Vehicle Registration 47

48. 48 Vehicle Registration October 2007 ─ owner of Green River Buses helped Capricorn register non-FMVSS motorcoaches in California Originally had Mexico registration and license plates only Ticket October 2006

49. 49 Vehicle Registration California did not require FMVSS verification for IRP registration Transferred California registration to Texas Same process used in registering three other non-FMVSS buses

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