Exempt Commodities: When a Carrier Needs No MC Number

What the exemption covers

Section 13506(a)(6) covers ordinary livestock; agricultural or horticultural commodities other than manufactured products of them; commodities listed as exempt in a 1958 Interstate Commerce Commission ruling, with stated exceptions; fish and shellfish that have not been treated for preserving, and their byproducts not for human consumption; and livestock and poultry feed, seeds and plants carried to a site of agricultural production or a business selling to agricultural producers. Other paragraphs exempt items such as used pallets and empty shipping containers, decorative rock, wood chips and broken glass.

Processing usually ends the exemption. 49 CFR 372.115 reproduces FMCSA’s list of commodities that are not exempt by statute, among them canned fruits and vegetables, frozen dinners, flour, sugar, cheese and butter, meat and meat products, commercial fertilizer and rough-sawed lumber. FMCSA points to its Administrative Ruling No. 119 as a guide to what is and is not exempt, and says the list changes and should be used as a general guide.

Sources: 49 U.S.C. 13506: miscellaneous motor carrier transportation exemptions; 49 CFR 372.115: commodities that are not exempt (Administrative Ruling No. 133); FMCSA: Can I operate outside my base state now that I have applied for operating authority? (exempt commodities)

What exempt does not exempt

49 CFR 390.5T defines an exempt motor carrier as one engaged in transportation exempt from economic regulation and states that exempt motor carriers are subject to the safety regulations. FMCSA’s FAQ says a carrier with a USDOT number may operate as an exempt for-hire interstate carrier without an MC number, and must still follow its state’s rules.

Financial responsibility still applies. Under 49 CFR 387.7, a for-hire carrier in interstate commerce must carry the minimum public liability coverage and keep proof, an MCS-90 endorsement or MCS-82 bond, at its principal place of business, produced on reasonable request. FMCSA’s filing requirements attach to operating authority registration, so a carrier with no authority may have no insurance filing to read. Ask for the policy and endorsement instead; the guide to verifying carrier insurance covers what they do and do not show, and the guide to BMC insurance filing forms covers the filings an authorized carrier would have.

Sources: 49 CFR 390.5T: definitions, including interstate commerce, intrastate commerce and exempt motor carrier; FMCSA: Can I operate outside my base state now that I have applied for operating authority? (exempt commodities); 49 CFR 387.7: financial responsibility required, including proof kept by the carrier; FMCSA: Insurance filing requirements

Brokering exempt loads

FMCSA states the rule directly: if the underlying transportation is exempt and you would not need motor-carrier authority to haul the commodity, you do not need broker authority to broker it. To broker non-exempt commodities, you must hold broker authority.

Most brokerages hold authority anyway, so the practical question is which carriers you may use. For a load that mixes exempt and non-exempt freight, a conservative practice is to treat the whole load as non-exempt and require a carrier with authority. That is a recommendation, not an FMCSA statement.

Sources: FMCSA: Am I required to have broker authority if I am brokering loads of an exempt commodity?

Reading the carrier record for an exempt load

SAFER classifies an Exempt For-Hire carrier as a for-hire carrier transporting commodities or conducting operations not subject to FMCSA economic regulation. Its operating status may read NOT AUTHORIZED, which SAFER defines as an active USDOT number with no operating authority. For an exempt load that status is expected; for a regulated load it disqualifies the carrier. The guide to suspended, revoked or inactive authority explains the other status values.

An exempt carrier crossing state lines is still in interstate commerce for safety and USDOT purposes. Whether the movement is interstate at all is covered in the guide to interstate and intrastate carriers.

Sources: SAFER field definitions; 49 CFR 390.5T: definitions, including interstate commerce, intrastate commerce and exempt motor carrier

Before tender

An illustrative note: “Commodity: fresh apples, field-run, unprocessed. Treated as exempt under 13506(a)(6). Carrier active USDOT, classified Exempt For-Hire, no MC. Policy and MCS-90 endorsement reviewed. If shipper adds juice concentrate, reclassify and re-review.”

A recommended sequence, to adapt to your brokerage’s written policy:

• Name the commodity as shipped, including any processing, freezing or packaging.
• Check it against 372.115 and FMCSA’s exempt-commodity guidance; when unsure, treat it as regulated.
• For an exempt carrier, confirm an active USDOT number and review the insurance policy and endorsement directly.
• Record the classification and who made it, so a later change in the load is caught.

Sources: 49 CFR 372.115: commodities that are not exempt (Administrative Ruling No. 133); 49 CFR 387.7: financial responsibility required, including proof kept by the carrier