Motor carriers operating in Georgia must comply with both federal regulations and state law when hiring commercial drivers. The bulk of the background check obligations comes from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, which apply to interstate carriers and, through Georgia’s adoption of similar standards, to many intrastate operations as well. This article walks through what those obligations are, where they come from, and how they typically work in practice.
The Federal Framework
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations are codified in Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations, with driver qualification rules in Part 391. The relevant subparts establish a driver qualification file, identify mandatory background checks, and set standards for ongoing monitoring throughout employment.
The Driver Qualification File
Under 49 C.F.R. § 391.51, each motor carrier must maintain a driver qualification file for every commercial driver. The file must include the driver’s application for employment, the inquiries made to previous employers, the responses to those inquiries, the motor vehicle record obtained from each state where the driver held a license, the annual review of the driver’s record, the driver’s medical examiner’s certificate or certified status, and the road test certificate or equivalent.
Pre Employment Investigation
Under 49 C.F.R. § 391.23, motor carriers must conduct two kinds of inquiries before or shortly after hiring a driver. First, the carrier must request the driver’s motor vehicle record from every state where the driver held a commercial driver’s license or permit during the preceding three years. The request must be made within 30 days of the date employment begins.
Second, the carrier must investigate the driver’s safety performance history for the three years immediately preceding the application. The investigation must be completed within 30 days of the date employment begins. The carrier must contact each previous employer of the driver who employed the driver to operate a commercial motor vehicle during the three year period and seek information about general driver identification and employment verification, accidents the driver was involved in, and, for drivers subject to federal drug and alcohol testing rules, alcohol and controlled substance testing results.
The carrier must document its investigation. Under 49 C.F.R. § 391.23(c), the file must include a written record of the previous employer’s name and address, the date of contact, and the information received or, if the employer did not respond, documentation of the good faith effort to contact them.
Application Requirements
Section 391.21 requires the driver’s application to include certain identifying and employment information, a list of all motor vehicle accidents in which the driver was involved in the three years preceding the application, a list of all traffic violations other than parking in the three years preceding the application, all employment for the prior three years, and a certification that the driver has not been disqualified.
Annual Reviews and Ongoing Monitoring
Under 49 C.F.R. § 391.25, at least once every twelve months, the carrier must obtain a copy of the driver’s motor vehicle record from each state where the driver held a license during the preceding twelve months. The carrier must review that record and the driver’s accident history, and prepare a written note of the review, signed by an appropriate carrier representative. The annual review evaluates whether the driver meets minimum requirements for safe driving or is disqualified to drive under § 391.15.
The Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse
The FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse, established under 49 C.F.R. Part 382, Subpart G, is a federal database of drug and alcohol program violations for commercial driver’s license holders. Carriers must conduct a pre employment query of the Clearinghouse before allowing a driver to operate a commercial motor vehicle. Carriers must also conduct annual queries for each currently employed driver. Drivers must consent to full queries through the system before disqualifying information can be released.
If a driver has unresolved drug or alcohol violations in the Clearinghouse, the carrier may not allow that driver to perform safety sensitive functions until the return to duty process described in 49 C.F.R. Part 40 is complete.
Drug and Alcohol Testing
Under 49 C.F.R. Part 382, motor carriers must conduct pre employment controlled substance testing before allowing a driver to perform safety sensitive functions for the first time. Random testing, post accident testing under specified circumstances, reasonable suspicion testing, and return to duty and follow up testing are also required. The procedures for these tests are set in 49 C.F.R. Part 40.
Medical Certification
Under 49 C.F.R. § 391.41, a person is not qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle unless they are physically qualified to do so. The driver must pass a medical examination by a medical examiner listed on the FMCSA National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners and obtain a medical examiner’s certificate under § 391.43. Medical certification information is reported to and maintained in the driver’s record. The qualification file must include the medical certification status.
Disqualifying Offenses
Federal regulations at 49 C.F.R. § 383.51 identify offenses that disqualify a person from operating a commercial motor vehicle, including driving under the influence in any vehicle, leaving the scene of an accident involving a commercial motor vehicle, certain felonies, operating with a revoked CDL, and accumulating serious traffic violations. A background check that reveals a disqualifying offense within the relevant timeframe prevents lawful hiring for safety sensitive operation.
How Georgia Law Interacts
Georgia regulates motor carriers operating within the state through the Georgia Department of Public Safety, Motor Carrier Compliance Division. Georgia has adopted, by reference, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for intrastate commercial motor vehicle operations, subject to limited exemptions. The official adoption is found in the Georgia Public Safety Code and in administrative rules promulgated by the Department of Public Safety. The practical effect is that the driver qualification, application, investigation, drug and alcohol testing, and medical certification rules summarized above apply broadly to commercial motor carriers operating in Georgia, not only to interstate operators.
Georgia also operates the state’s Department of Driver Services, which issues commercial driver’s licenses and maintains the state’s driver records. Carriers obtain Georgia driving records through DDS or through authorized third party services that aggregate state records.
Background Checks That Are Not Federally Required
Federal regulations focus on safety related background information: driving record, employment history, accident history, drug and alcohol testing, and medical qualification. Federal regulations do not require general criminal background checks on most commercial drivers. However, drivers who haul hazardous materials and need a hazardous materials endorsement on their CDL are subject to a security threat assessment by the Transportation Security Administration under 49 C.F.R. Part 1572, which includes a criminal history records check, an immigration status check, and an intelligence related check.
Some motor carriers also voluntarily conduct broader criminal background checks. When they do, the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1681 and following, governs how those checks are obtained from consumer reporting agencies, including the disclosure and authorization requirements before the report is obtained, and the adverse action requirements before the report is used to make a disqualifying decision.
Recordkeeping Periods
The driver qualification file must be retained for the duration of employment and for three years thereafter, under 49 C.F.R. § 391.51. Investigation records under § 391.23 must be retained for three years from the date of employment. Drug and alcohol testing records have varied retention periods set in 49 C.F.R. § 382.401, ranging from one year to five years depending on the record type.
Why These Obligations Matter in Civil Cases
In civil cases arising from a crash, the background check obligations matter for two reasons. First, a carrier that did not perform required investigations may be subject to direct claims for negligent hiring, negligent retention, or negligent entrustment if the missing information would have shown the driver was unfit. Second, the documentation that the regulations require to be kept is often the primary source of evidence about what the carrier knew and when. Federal preservation rules apply to those records, and they are routine subjects of discovery in litigation.
Where to Find the Current Rules
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations are published in the Code of Federal Regulations and available through the official Electronic Code of Federal Regulations at ecfr.gov. The Georgia adoption and any state specific exemptions are published by the Georgia Department of Public Safety. Both the federal regulatory text and the Georgia adoption are subject to periodic amendment.
Disclaimer
This article is provided strictly for general educational and informational purposes. It is intended to explain how Georgia law works as a matter of public legal education, and it does not constitute legal advice, a legal opinion, or a recommendation about any particular course of action. Reading this article, or contacting the website on which it appears, does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader and any law firm, attorney, or author.
The law changes over time. Statutes, regulations, court rules, and judicial decisions discussed here may have been amended, repealed, superseded, or reinterpreted after the date of publication, and citations to specific code sections or cases reflect the law only as it was understood when this article was written. The application of any legal principle also depends heavily on the specific facts and circumstances of an individual matter, and outcomes vary from case to case.
For these reasons, no one should rely on this article as a substitute for advice from a licensed Georgia attorney who can review the particular facts involved. The author and publisher make no warranty, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or applicability of the information provided, and disclaim any liability for any action taken or not taken based on this content.