§31132. Definitions

In this subchapter-

(1) "commercial motor vehicle" means a self-propelled or towed vehicle used on the highways in interstate commerce to transport passengers or property, if the vehicle-

(A) has a gross vehicle weight rating of at least 10,001 pounds;

(B) is designed to transport more than 15 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 an operator of a commercial motor vehicle (including an independent contractor when 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; 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 the employment by the Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State.

(3) "employer"-

(A) means a person engaged in a business affecting interstate commerce that owns or leases a commercial motor vehicle in connection with that business, or assigns an employee to operate it; but

(B) does not include the Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State.

(4) "interstate commerce" means trade, traffic, or transportation in the United States between a place in a State and-

(A) a place outside that State (including a place outside the United States); or

(B) another place in the same State through another State or through a place outside the United States.

(5) "intrastate commerce" means trade, traffic, or transportation in a State that is not interstate commerce.

(6) "regulation" includes a standard or order.

(7) "State" means a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, and, in sections 31136 and 31140–31142 of this title, a political subdivision of a State.

(8) "State law" includes a law enacted by a political subdivision of a State.

(9) "State regulation" includes a regulation prescribed by a political subdivision of a State.

(10) "United States" means the States of the United States and the District of Columbia.

( Pub. L. 103–272, §1(e), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 1000 .)

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised Section	Source (U.S. Code)	Source (Statutes at Large)
31132	49 App.:2503.	Oct. 30, 1984, Pub. L. 98–554, §204, 98 Stat. 2833 .

The text of 49 App.:2503(6) is omitted as unnecessary because of 1:1. The text of 49 App.:2503(8) is omitted as surplus because the complete name of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Regulatory Review Panel is used the first time the term appears in a section. The text of 49 App.:2503(9) is omitted as surplus because the complete name of the Secretary of Transportation is used the first time the term appears in a section.

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in sections 521, 5113, 11504, 31161 of this title.