Revocation Of Operating Authority – 5 Critical Facts You Should Be Aware Of

Before you understand how the revocation of your operating authority works, you should understand what operating authority is. This is a permit or a right that the federal motor carrier safety administration and the US department of transportation give to a commercial motor carrier. Under this permit, they are allowed to transport goods or passengers for hire across state borders. Operating authority applies to Canadian-domiciled and Mexican-domiciled motor carriers as well. If they wish to continue doing business across interstate borders within the United States, they are required to obtain their operating authority. The following section talks about a few critical aspects of operating authority and how you can stay functional and compliant throughout the year without any hassles or interruptions.

1. Operating Authority Status – What You Should Know

Several motor carriers complain about their operating authority status showing “not authorized“. This is nothing to worry about. The most common reason that your status shows “not authorized” is that your MC number is not active. You can change it to “authorized” by getting in touch with your third-party administrator or service agent. They will apply to the FMCSA with all the due formalities and documentation for your MC number reactivation. After that, your operating status gets changed to “authorized” soon.

2. Revoking Your Operating Authority On Your Own (Voluntary)

This is also a critical detail that you should be aware of. If you are trying to pause your business functions for a while or perhaps want to diversify into other operations or a different industry, you may choose to revoke your operating authority temporarily and voluntarily. For this, you will have to perform the following steps:

• Fill out and complete the OCE 46 form (this is the request for the revocation of your registration which is your operating authority) 
• You should also sign the completed OCE 46 form for this to take effect 
• If you are not available, make sure that a person who has adequate authority is available to sign on your behalf 
• You must upload the signed document on the official website of the FMCSA

Instead of going through all this complicated process, as an alternative what you can do is get in touch with your third-party administrator. They are going to help you out with your revocation procedure. You can reinstate your operating authority very easily whenever you decide to start your business again.

3. Reinstating Your Trucking Authority / Operating Authority

Again, if you are thinking about reinstating your operating authority or trucking authority, the process is quite simple. You will first have to ensure that you have a US DOT pin with you. You can use the MCSA-5889 motor carrier records change form for this purpose. A few details that you will have to take care of include:

• You should have your MC number with you 
• Fill in the legal name of the career with which the business has been registered 
• If you decide to use a credit card, you should also mention the name of the person or the company under which that credit card has been issued 
• Include the billing address of the card 
• Valid and functional phone number 

There are other details as well that you should be able to find out from your service agent. You shouldn’t try to handle all of this documentation on your own. Take the advice or assistance of your third-party administrator to convey all this information and filled-out forms to the FMCSA. To get your trucking authority reinstated.

4. Understanding Involuntary Revocation / FMCSA revocation Of Your Operating Authority

If there has been any involuntary revocation of your operating authority, this means that you haven’t initiated it. It clearly implies that the FMCSA has determined that you are a potential/imminent hazard and that your vehicles should not be allowed to function on US highways. In such a situation, you will have to reapply for your operating authority.

5. The OCE 46 Form – What All Do You Need To Know

The OCE 46 form is your request form which you have to fill out to revoke your operating authority. Submitting the form is easy if you have all the relevant documents and details. However, you should ask your service agent to assist you with it if you do not wish to make any errors. Then complete the form, and no spaces should be left blank. There will be details such as the name of the business, the address of the carrier, and your authorized signature that will have to go on this form.

In the end, remember that there could be several reasons that you may choose to revoke your operating authority on your own. It is usually going to take somewhere between 2 to 5 days for the procedure to take effect. You can also reinstate your operating authority whenever you want.