ARLINGTON, Va. — Officials with the International Registration Plan continue to plow through an extensive rewrite of the 5-year old reciprocity agreement.

IRP Inc. — a division of the American Association of Motor Transport Administrators — created a Plan Rewrite Working Group in early 2005 which was charged with updating and modernizing the IRP Plan.

The International Registration Plan is a registration reciprocity agreement among U.S. states and provinces of Canada providing blanket registration for trucks and buses as an alternative to individual reciprocity agreements, and distributes truck registration fees among member jurisdictions based on the number of kilometres carriers travel in other jurisdictions. Vehicles have one licence plate and registration document, which allows travel in all jurisdictions.

The sun is setting on original IRP document

The first major rewrite draft was presented to stakeholders in October last year. There will be an all-jurisdiction meeting this summer. IRP Inc. hopes to hold a vote in the winter of 2007, and if approved implement the plan on Jan. 1, 2008.

The rewrite is described as a massive undertaking, which has been broken up into four sections: Fees; Basing Requirements; Industry Segment; and Administration and Audit.

Officials expect the new IRP Plan to improve clarity and uniformity by organizing it into topic areas like application, registration fee, credentials, membership duties, etc. It will determine which audit requirements belong in the Plan and which belong in the Audit Procedures Manual.

Moreover, it will prevent registrants from changing base jurisdictions to avoid paying delinquent fees, safety requirements, or safety sanctions.

One way it plans on being more consistent is by clearly defining actual distance, estimated distance, second-year estimates, and procedures for combining and splitting fleets. Furthermore, it will revise base jurisdiction requirements to meet needs of both businesses and individuals, allow for new technology; and more accurate and timely collection of fees.

Operating under the guiding principle that “a registrant is a registrant,” all vehicles should be registered under the same rules, officials say. Therefore, the rewrite will include comprehensive review of specific requirements for registration for owner-operator vehicles; rental vehicles; household goods carriers; and motorbus apportionment.

Private and for-hire carriers from all jurisdictions are asked to weigh in with comments at either their provincial transportation IRP office or directly at IRP headquarters. For more info contact IRP Inc. at (703) 522-1905 or go to www.aamva.org/IRP, or contact your home base transport ministry.

The entire draft proposal can be found at TodaysTrucking.com’s Full Story index, under “Cross-Border Trucking – Studies & Papers.” Follow the link listed below. Supplemental literature and documents on the rewrite can be found at www.aamva.org/IRP.