U.S Code last checked for updates: Feb 07, 2026
Searching within: All TitlesTitle 49Subtitle VIPart BChapter 311Subchapter I
§ 31101.
Definitions
In this subchapter—
(1)
“commercial motor vehicle” means (except in section 31106) a self-propelled or towed vehicle used on the highways in commerce principally to transport passengers or cargo, if the vehicle—
(A)
has a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of at least 10,001 pounds, whichever is greater;
(B)
is designed to transport more than 10 passengers including the driver; or
(C)
is used in transporting material found by the Secretary of Transportation to be hazardous under section 5103 of this title and transported in a quantity requiring placarding under regulations prescribed by the Secretary under section 5103.
(2)
“employee” means a driver of a commercial motor vehicle (including an independent contractor when personally operating a commercial motor vehicle), a mechanic, a freight handler, or an individual not an employer, who—
(A)
directly affects commercial motor vehicle safety in the course of employment by a commercial motor carrier; and
(B)
is not an employee of the United States Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State acting in the course of employment.
(3)
“employer”—
(A)
means a person engaged in a business affecting commerce that owns or leases a commercial motor vehicle in connection with that business, or assigns an employee to operate the vehicle in commerce; but
(B)
does not include the Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State.
(4)
“State” means a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
(Pub. L. 103–272, § 1(e), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 984; Pub. L. 105–178, title IV, § 4003(a), June 9, 1998, 112 Stat. 395.)
cite as: 49 USC 31101
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