Reminder: hang onto that paper

Here’s a reminder: the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will require until January 30, 2014 that interstate drivers subject to the commercial driver’s license (CDL) regulations and the Federal physical qualification requirements must retain paper copies of their medical examiner’s certificate. Interstate motor carriers are also required to retain copies of their drivers’ medical certificates in their driver qualification files. So if you go to renew, upgrade, transfer or otherwise change your license, after Jan. 30 you will have to provide proof of medical certification. Your state can decide if the medical examiner’s “long form” or the actual medical certificate will be required, so check with your state commercial driver licensing agency to see what you’ll need to bring.