JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has removed more than 10,000 commercial driver training providers from its federal registry since December 2025 and more than 100 noncompliant electronic logging devices from its approved list, according to the agency’s chief safety officer.
Steve Dowling outlined the agency’s expanding enforcement efforts Wednesday during a keynote address at the second annual WEX OTR Summit in Jacksonville, Florida, saying FMCSA is strengthening oversight of commercial driver training, licensing, carrier registration and trucking operations.
Dowling, who became FMCSA’s chief safety officer in August, said the agency is taking a more comprehensive approach to identifying unsafe trucking companies and preventing fraud before carriers enter the industry.
“If we want to protect the industry, we need to make sure that we start at the driver level and how they’re trained,” Dowling told attendees.
The former California Highway Patrol official and Covenant Logistics safety executive said FMCSA’s enforcement strategy focuses on five stages of commercial motor vehicle operations: training, licensing, registration, operations and enforcement.
More than 10,000 training providers removed
Dowling said more than 10,000 providers have been removed from FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry since December 2025.
The figure represents the agency’s broader registry cleanup and should not be confused with the separate emergency enforcement action announced in August.
That action targeted approximately 110 commercial driver training schools whose operations were linked to more than 5,000 drivers cited for English-language proficiency violations, according to Dowling.
“Since December of ’25, there have been more than 10,000 providers that have been removed from the training provider registry,” Dowling said.
He said the agency intends to continue reviewing driver training programs to ensure schools meet federal requirements.
“You’ve seen a real increased enforcement effort from us and emphasis on that,” Dowling said. “You’re going to continue to see us try to make sure that the schools are doing what they’re supposed to do.”
FMCSA is also strengthening oversight of state commercial driver’s license programs and third-party testing operations.
Dowling said the agency wants trucking companies to have confidence that drivers who receive CDLs have met consistent federal standards, regardless of the state issuing the license.
ELD crackdown expands
FMCSA has also intensified its scrutiny of electronic logging devices, which are used to record commercial drivers’ hours of service.
Dowling said the agency has removed more than 100 noncompliant devices from its registered ELD list and prevented nearly 600 others from being approved.
“We’ve removed over 100 noncompliant ELDs from the registered device list, and we’ve prevented nearly 600 from making it onto the list entirely,” Dowling said.
He said the agency is particularly concerned about logging systems that can be manipulated to conceal hours-of-service violations.
“You can’t go in and edit logs by making a phone call,” Dowling said. “Anytime we hear of that, we’re going and investigating.”
Dowling encouraged motor carriers to verify that their ELD providers remain on FMCSA’s registered device list and that the systems they use cannot be improperly manipulated.
He said the agency intends to continue strengthening oversight of ELD manufacturers and other transportation technology providers.
FMCSA targets chameleon carriers through registration overhaul
Another major enforcement priority is identifying so-called chameleon carriers — trucking companies that shut down and reopen under new identities to evade safety enforcement, penalties or other regulatory requirements.
Dowling said FMCSA’s modernized registration system, Motus, is designed to improve verification of carrier ownership and principal places of business.
He described instances in which multiple trucking companies have registered using the same address or post office box, potentially indicating attempts to conceal common ownership or circumvent federal requirements.
“One location that maybe has 20 different DOT numbers coming out of a PO box in a location, that’s a problem,” Dowling said.
The new registration platform is intended to identify suspicious applications before federal operating authority is granted.
Dowling acknowledged that Motus has experienced technical problems during its rollout.
He said approximately 95% of carrier registration activity was functioning through the system based on data he reviewed the previous week, but acknowledged that problems affecting the remaining users were unacceptable.
“That’s not acceptable to us,” Dowling said of the difficulties experienced by some applicants.
He said FMCSA temporarily suspended its biennial registration update requirement while the agency works to address technical issues.
Dowling said the registration changes are helping prevent potentially fraudulent businesses from entering the trucking industry.
“There are thousands of people that we’re keeping out of the industry because we’ve initiated [Motus],” Dowling said.
He did not provide a precise count of blocked applicants or a breakdown of how many were suspected of fraud rather than affected by registration problems.
Federal investigators coordinate on trucking fraud
During a question-and-answer session following the keynote, Dowling said FMCSA is increasingly working with the Justice Department, FBI and federal prosecutors to investigate chameleon carriers and other suspected trucking fraud.
He said some investigations involve networks of companies that operate across multiple jurisdictions, making it necessary to coordinate with other law enforcement agencies.
“You’re going to see cases that start coming out that are specifically combating against chameleon carriers,” Dowling said.
He said investigators are looking beyond individual violations to identify connections among companies, owners, equipment and other operations.
“These investigations usually aren’t just linear to where, okay, it’s one violation to one carrier,” Dowling said.
The agency is also relying on information provided by trucking companies, industry representatives and others who identify suspicious carriers or potentially noncompliant ELD providers.
Dowling said FMCSA is actively investigating those reports.
CDL enforcement effectiveness remains under review
Dowling also addressed questions about federal enforcement of non-domiciled CDLs and English-language proficiency requirements.
He said FMCSA is seeing indications that drivers who do not meet non-domiciled CDL requirements may also have English-language proficiency violations.
However, he acknowledged that the agency needs additional time and data to determine whether its enforcement initiatives are producing measurable reductions in crashes.
“Sometimes you have to be patient to be able to see if the things that you are doing works,” Dowling said.
He said FMCSA is collecting more information and examining connections among driver training, licensing records and crash investigations.
The agency is also working with state licensing authorities to ensure non-domiciled CDLs are issued and maintained in accordance with federal requirements.
Asked whether FMCSA has an accurate count of non-domiciled CDL holders currently operating in the United States, Dowling said he could not recall a specific figure.
He noted that some non-domiciled CDL holders remain legally eligible to operate and that the total number is changing as states implement federal restrictions.
Dowling said the agency is focusing on auditing state licensing processes rather than relying solely on a nationwide count.
Hours-of-service flexibility and safety scoring changes ahead
Looking ahead to 2027, Dowling said FMCSA is evaluating potential changes to hours-of-service regulations and its Safety Measurement System, which helps identify motor carriers for intervention.
He referenced ongoing research into additional hours-of-service flexibility, including sleeper-berth provisions and the 14-hour duty window.
Dowling said the agency wants to determine whether existing regulations can be adjusted without compromising efforts to prevent driver fatigue.
“Just because that’s what the rule is doesn’t mean we don’t need to look at it,” he said.
FMCSA is also examining how it uses inspection, crash and compliance data to identify high-risk motor carriers.
Dowling said the agency wants to focus its limited enforcement resources on operations presenting the greatest safety risks rather than minor administrative violations.
“We can get more predictive by data analysis on who is more likely to crash,” he said.
Why it matters: FMCSA’s expanded scrutiny of CDL schools, licensing agencies, electronic logging devices and carrier registrations could significantly change how trucking companies enter the market, recruit drivers and demonstrate compliance heading into 2027.
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