OTA Dispatch Fall 2015

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26 Oregon Truck DISPATCH
FEATURE
Every business should periodically check its legal
status and make sure that all information listed by
various governmental agencies is up to date and
correct. The checkup is not difficult and, unless you
find something that needs to be updated or corrected,
it should not be time consuming. Below is a list of
what you should check on:
Secretary of State Registrations
Check the status of your business on the Secretaries of
State websites in those states where your business is
incorporated, organized or formed, in which it is
registered as a foreign corporation authorized to do
business, or where you have trade name(s) registered.
You need to confirm that all of the information listed is
current and correct and, most importantly, that your
business is in good standing. If it is not, you need to
update the information.
Particular care needs to be taken in naming your
registered agent. A registered agent is the person you
have designated to receive legal notices on behalf of
the business. Whoever is named as registered agent
needs to understand the importance of the role and
that adverse legal consequences likely will result if an
appropriate response is not made in a timely manner.
That person should be an officer, director, member or
owner of the company. Oftentimes the business’s
lawyer will be the registered agent. (See below regarding
the FMCSA’s BOC-3 process agent requirement.)
FMCSA
Check the FMCSA Registration and Insurance
website to confirm that the information listed is
current and correct and, most importantly, that all of
the authority you thought you had remains active. We
recently were contacted by a carrier located in the
Midwest who was totally unaware that its authority
had been revoked because a cargo insurance certificate
was not on file (HHG carriers must still file proof of
cargo insurance).
If you need new authority, it is recommended that you
file it as soon as possible. Through December 11, 2015,
you can use the current system that is known to file for
new authority. On December 12, 2015 the FMCSA will
begin to phase in the Unified Registration System
(URS) starting with new applicants being forced to use
the URS online registration application. How that
works remains to be seen.
The FMCSA requires carriers and brokers to designate
agents by filing a form BOC-3. Carriers must
designate agents in each state they are authorized to
operate in or through—which means in every state
since there is no geographical limitation. Brokers are
required to designate agents in any state where they
have an office or write a contract, which is not
necessarily every state. Nevertheless, most carriers and
brokers use companies to make “blanket filings” on
Start the New Year Right
with a Quick Checkup
By Kevin Anderson, Anderson & Yamada, P.C.