The Performance & Registration Systems Management (PRISM) is a joint project involving state registration and law enforcement agencies, AAMVA, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), and Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL). PRISM allows state registration and law enforcement personnel to identify motor carriers and their vehicles that were placed in the Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Process (MCSIP) or have had their registrations suspended or revoked.
Using a program called the Safety Status Measurement System (SafeStat), FMCSA evaluates a motor carrier’s safety fitness using data from inspections, accident reports, citations, and compliance reviews. Motor carriers whose safety fitness falls below a threshold are placed in the MCSIP and their progress is monitored. Sanctions range from a warning letter to vehicle registration suspension or revocation by the state in which the carrier is domiciled.
PRISM provides a way for this carrier safety fitness information to reach state registration and law enforcement (including inspection) personnel. It also provides a way for these individuals to find out, by vehicle, if the carrier to which it is assigned is in the MCSIP or has had its registration suspended or revoked. Registration personnel can then deny vehicle registration to carriers with suspended or revoked registrations and enforcement can more closely scrutinize vehicles assigned to MCSIP carriers, e.g., inspect them more frequently.
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Questions about how to get started with implementation of PRISM in your state should be directed to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration PRISM team.