USDOT number vs MC number: which one you need and what each does
USDOT vs MC number: who needs each under 49 U.S.C. 31134 and 13901, who is exempt under 13506, the $300 fee, and FMCSA's 2026 word on retiring MC numbers.
BOC-3 process agents: what the filing is, who must have one, and how it gets you suspended
BOC-3 process agent filing under 49 CFR part 366: who must file, the 20-day deadline, blanket agents, changing agents, and how a cancelled one suspends you.
BMC-91, BMC-91X, BMC-34, BMC-84/85: the insurance filings behind an operating authority
Every BMC form FMCSA accepts, the $750,000 / $1M / $5M minimums in 49 CFR 387.9 and 387.303T, the $75,000 broker bond, and the 30-day cancellation rule.
The new entrant safety audit: the 12-month window, the automatic-failure violations, and what "pass" actually means
New entrant safety audit under 49 CFR 385: the 12-month deadline, 16 automatic-failure violations, the 60-day corrective clock, and what a pass means.
IRP vs IFTA: apportioned plates and fuel tax are two different things
IRP registers the truck; IFTA taxes its fuel. The two 26,000-lb definitions compared from the official documents, quarterly due dates, base states, UCR.
FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse for owner-operators
The FMCSA Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse under 49 CFR 382 subpart G: pre-employment and annual queries, driver consent, reporting, and why every owner-operator needs a C/TPA.
Broker authority vs carrier authority: the $75,000 bond, recordkeeping, and double brokering
What makes a business a broker vs a carrier under 49 U.S.C. 13102, the $75,000 BMC-84 bond or BMC-85 trust fund in 49 CFR 387.307, broker recordkeeping under part 371, and what FMCSA actually says about double brokering.
How these guides are written
Each guide quotes the operative text of the rules it covers: the Code of Federal Regulations as published by the eCFR, the United States Code, Federal Register notices, the IRP and IFTA agreements themselves, and FMCSA's own publications where they could be retrieved. Each one prints the date that text was retrieved, ends with a list of what it deliberately does not cover, and lists its sources. Nothing here is legal advice; the methodology page explains how the rest of the site is produced, and corrections go to the contact address.