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Open Recommendations (14 total)

Motor Carrier Operations: Improvements Needed to Federal System for Collecting and Addressing Complaints against Truck, Moving, and Bus Companies

GAO-23-105972
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10 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure FMCSA updates its complaint review guidance to define each category of complaint (i.e., ADA, coercion, harassment, hazardous materials, household goods, safety, and other commercial complaints) and link allegations to these categories. (Recommendation 2)
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DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA is in the process of developing and promulgating updated complaint review guidance that will define each complaint category to its staff and contractors. FMCSA's updated guidance will encompass all complaint types received by FMCSA and will include information on how to accurately categorize, differentiate, and record customer complaints in the NCCDB. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by December 31, 2024. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure FMCSA updates its complaint review guidance to require that FMCSA staff and managers enable auto-notifications for complaints for which they are responsible. (Recommendation 7)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA is developing updated complaint review guidance and will complete initial process adjustments to provide notifications to submitters and FMCSA personnel as complaints are addressed, closed, and completed by December 31, 2024. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure the National Consumer Complaint Database website has performance standards, such as goals and measures, and that the website is assessed against the performance standards. (Recommendation 12)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA will undertake this effort as a part of its NCCDB and IT modernization project. DOT stated that FMCSA will assess pertinent data points to identify performance measures that align with user experience and complaint feedback and will utilize these metrics to assess progress toward future customer service and complaint response goals and objectives. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by June 30, 2025. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure FMCSA updates its complaint review guidance to provide clear and comprehensive procedures on how to review all categories of complaints, such as step-by-step instructions or flow charts. (Recommendation 5)
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DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA is developing updated complaint review guidance to include procedures on addressing and closing complaints. DOT stated that the new procedures will improve case management performance and identify who is responsible for complaint resolution for each complaint type. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by December 31, 2024. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure the National Consumer Complaint Database website appropriately targets key audiences, including by defining acronyms and technical terms, and providing more detailed or relevant examples of complaints that may be filed by truck and bus drivers. (Recommendation 10)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA will update the NCCDB website as part of its new complaint system, using plain language that ensures complaint types are clearly delineated, with relevant examples, to its targeted audiences. FMCSA will develop educational resources on the website for submitters (i.e., videos, how-to guides, checklists, etc.) and, to improve efficiency, will further clarify documentation that is required when submitting complaints. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by June 30, 2025. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure FMCSA updates its complaint review guidance to define the characteristics a complaint must have, such as who submitted the complaint and the nature of the incident, to qualify as a motorist complaint. (Recommendation 3)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA is developing updated complaint review guidance for both the public, agency staff, and contractors to define minimally acceptable details relating to motorist complaints. The guidance will include language clearly explaining to the public what actions FMCSA may take on complaints, and the impact that missing or incomplete information has on the Agency's ability to effectively investigate complaints. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by December 31, 2024. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure FMCSA updates its complaint review guidance to require managers to review reports on the status of complaints as part of their oversight of complaint review. (Recommendation 8)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA is developing updated complaint review guidance procedures for management regarding the availability of reports within the current NCCDB and will implement expectations for review and follow-up by program managers. FMCSA will further update its guidance upon deployment of an updated NCCDB system. FMCSA anticipates completing initial complaint review guidance and program manager training by December 31, 2024. Additional training will be completed when the new system is deployed by June 30, 2025. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure the National Consumer Complaint Database website is tested with external users on a regular basis. (Recommendation 13)
Open
DOT partially concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that open public testing is not a sustainable approach to determine external user experience. However, DOT said, FMCSA is currently planning a large-scale modernization of the NCCDB and will ensure its future platform follows industry standards for human-centered design and user feedback. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by June 30, 2025. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should make data on all categories of complaints available to the public, as appropriate, and in line with DOT's Data Management Policy. (Recommendation 1)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA will make National Consumer Complaint Database (NCCDB) data, as appropriate, available to the public pursuant to DOT policy. FMCSA will achieve this objective through its modernization of the NCCDB, which will include a publicly searchable data component. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by June 30, 2025. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration The FMCSA Administrator should ensure FMCSA updates its complaint review guidance to require that key determinations are documented in complaint case files. (Recommendation 6)
Open
DOT concurred with this recommendation. In its February 2024 180-day letter, DOT stated that FMCSA is developing updated complaint review guidance to cover the management of cases from complaint initiation through closeout and will provide necessary supportive resources and process direction to ensure proper documentation of determinations. FMCSA anticipates completing this action by December 31, 2024. GAO will continue to monitor FMCSA's efforts to implement this recommendation.
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