English Language Proficiency; Out of Service Criteria
- A required action falls due inside 90 days
- The document was truncated for cost — not all of it was read
Why it reaches us
We are the regulated entity type: Meridian holds USDOT 2277419 / MC-778210 and runs 42 interstate power units with 47 CDL drivers, so 49 CFR 391.11(b)(2) driver-qualification duties already bind us. The rule would codify an ELP violation as an immediate out-of-service condition for a driver operating a CMV in interstate commerce — our fleet is interstate, and the U.S.-Mexico border commercial zone carve-out is irrelevant to us (Columbus/San Antonio/Modesto retail and club-store distribution; no cross-border or border-zone-only trips, no hazmat authority). What decides impact level, though, is that the substantive ELP standard is unchanged: "This proposed rule would not change the ELP requirements set forth in section 391.11(b)(2)," and the CVSA OOS criteria implementing it are already in effect. So the exposure is enforcement/operational (a driver and load stranded roadside on inspection) rather than a new compliance obligation.
What changed
FMCSA proposes to amend 49 CFR 390.5, 390.5T and 391.11(b)(2) to make non-compliance with the English language proficiency driver-qualification requirement an explicit out-of-service violation, aligning the regulation with the May 2025 and April 2026 FMCSA enforcement policy memos and the North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria updates (effective June 25, 2025; revised April 19, 2026). A driver found in violation while operating a CMV in interstate commerce "shall be placed out-of-service immediately," with a narrowed exception for trips confined to U.S.-Mexico border commercial zones. FMCSA states the proposal creates no new requirements and does not change requirements for small entities; the ELP standard itself (read and speak English sufficiently to converse with the public, understand highway signs, respond to official inquiries, make entries on reports and records) is unchanged. Proposed rule only — comment period open.
What we would have to do
- fleet Confirm the driver qualification process documents an ELP assessment for all 47 CDL holders, per FMCSA guidance FMCSA-DQ-391.11-FAQ001, and file the assessment record in each DQ file. This is the control that prevents a roadside OOS order on an interstate load.
- fleet Brief drivers and dispatch that an ELP finding at roadside now results in immediate out-of-service placement, and confirm the load-recovery/relay procedure covers a driver being put OOS mid-trip.
- legal Decide whether to file a comment; no substantive burden is proposed for carriers our size, so a no-comment decision is defensible and should simply be recorded. · due 2026-10-09
Evidence
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SUMMARY: FMCSA proposes to codify the English language proficiency
(ELP) driver qualification requirement as an out-of-service (OOS)
violation.
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Summary — subject matter of the proposed rule
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SUMMARY: FMCSA proposes to codify the English language proficiency
(ELP) driver qualification requirement as an out-of-service (OOS)
violation. The rulemaking would ensure uniform enforcement by aligning
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR) with the current
enforcement tolerances in the North American Standard Out-of-Service
Criteria issued by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA). The
rulemaking responds to a petition from CVSA.
D
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In accordance with 49 CFR 391.11(a), a person shall not drive a
commercial motor vehicle, as defined in section 390.5T, in interstate
commerce unless the individual meets the driver qualification
requirements in part 391.
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Applicability — interstate CMV operation, which describes our 42-power-unit interstate fleet
Read what surrounds it
as
been unmistakable since 1937, and the intervening period of more than
two years is regarded as sufficient to justify the removal of the
exception'' (14 M.C.C. 669, at 675). As explained above, while the ICC
regulations on ELP have been recodified, the intent of Congress to
retain and enforce them is clear.
In accordance with 49 CFR 391.11(a), a person shall not drive a
commercial motor vehicle, as defined in section 390.5T, in interstate
commerce unless the individual meets the driver qualification
requirements in part 391. Under section 391.11(b)(2), the Secretary has
determined that one such qualification requirement is that a person
must be able to read and speak the English language sufficiently to
converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs
and signals in the English language, to respond to official inqu
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(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (c)(2) of this section, any
person who is found to be in violation of the provisions of paragraph
(b)(2) of this section while operating a commercial motor vehicle in
interstate commerce shall be placed out-of-service immediately.
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Proposed regulatory text — immediate OOS consequence driving our operational exposure
Read what surrounds it
1748, 1767; sec. 32934, Pub. L. 112-141, 126 Stat. 405, 830; secs.
5403 and 5524, Pub. L. 114-94, 129 Stat. 1312, 1548, 1560; sec. 2,
Pub. L. 115-105, 131 Stat. 2263; and 49 CFR 1.87.
0
5. Sec. 391.11 is amended by adding new paragraph (c) to read as
follows:
Sec. 391.11 General qualifications of drivers.
* * * * *
(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (c)(2) of this section, any
person who is found to be in violation of the provisions of paragraph
(b)(2) of this section while operating a commercial motor vehicle in
interstate commerce shall be placed out-of-service immediately.
(2) Any person who is found to be in violation of the provisions of
paragraph (b)(2) of this section while operating a commercial motor
vehicle in interstate commerce in a commercial zone, designated in part
372, subpart B of this subchapter, along the U.S.-Mexico international
border will not be placed out-of-serv
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The proposed rulemaking does not create new requirements or
obligations for regulated entities but would codify and align with
current enforcement tolerances in the North American Standard Out-of-
Service Criteria and E.O.
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FMCSA statement of burden — basis for MEDIUM rather than HIGH
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5, Oct. 4, 1993) and DOT Rulemaking Procedures (49 CFR
part 5, subpart B). The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) determined that this
proposed rule is a significant regulatory action under section 3(f) of
E.O. 12866 and has reviewed it under that E.O.
The proposed rulemaking does not create new requirements or
obligations for regulated entities but would codify and align with
current enforcement tolerances in the North American Standard Out-of-
Service Criteria and E.O. 14286. The rulemaking is necessary to ensure
uniform enforcement by aligning the FMCSR with the current enforcement
tolerances in the North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria. This
proposed rule would incorporate the limited exception from OOS
violations for drivers whose current trip would not involve
tran
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This proposed rule would not change the ELP requirements set forth in
section 391.11(b)(2).
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Scope — substantive driver qualification standard unchanged
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less of where the
inspection takes place.
Under the regulatory baseline, the enforcement tolerances in the
North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria, effective June 25,
2025, which incorporated the May 2025 policy memo, would remain in
effect. The Agency has had requirements for ELP dating back to 1936.
This proposed rule would not change the ELP requirements set forth in
section 391.11(b)(2). Further, the proposal would not impact existing
tools at the Agency's discretion regarding letters of disqualification
and civil penalty actions. These tools have been in place for over 40
years and would continue to be available to FMCSA if this proposed rule
is finalized. This regulatory analysis of the proposed
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On
May 22, 2025, FMCSA published related guidance for motor carriers on
what they should do to assess a CMV driver's ELP during the driver
qualification process.
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Carrier-side guidance supporting the DQ-file action item
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https://cvsa.org/news/elp-oosc/">https://cvsa.org/news/elp-oosc/</a>.
\8\ Available at <a href="https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/newsroom/updated-internal-agency-enforcement-policy-english-language-proficiency">https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/newsroom/updated-internal-agency-enforcement-policy-english-language-proficiency</a>. On
May 22, 2025, FMCSA published related guidance for motor carriers on
what they should do to assess a CMV driver's ELP during the driver
qualification process. See FMCSA-DQ-391.11-FAQ001 (2025-05-22),
available at <a href="https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/what-should-motor-carrier-do-assess-cmv-drivers-english-language-proficiency-elp-during">https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/what-should-motor-carrier-do-assess-cmv-drivers-english-language-proficiency-elp-during</a>.
\9\ The May 2025 policy memo advises FMCSA personnel to initiate
all roadside inspections in English. If the inspector's initial
contact with the driver indicates that the driver may not understand
the inspector's instructions, the inspector should conduct an ELP
assessment consisting of a driver interview (to dete
Recording a decision writes to the audit trail — disabled on the public demo.