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New authority · data from the week ending 2026-10-25New MC Number Leads: New Operating Authority vs New USDOT Numbers
A new USDOT number means a trucking company exists. Active operating authority means it can start hauling for customers. Here is the difference, why sellers of ELDs, fuel cards and factoring care about the second moment, and how our weekly file shows where each new carrier stands.
New USDOT number or new operating authority?
People say "new MC number leads" and "new DOT leads" as if they were the same list. They are two different moments in a new carrier's first weeks.
| New USDOT number | New operating authority (MC number) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | The carrier's ID with FMCSA, used for safety records | Permission to haul regulated freight for hire across state lines, under an MC docket number |
| Who needs it | Interstate commercial carriers, and intrastate carriers in many states | For-hire interstate carriers, brokers and freight forwarders. Private and intrastate carriers do not. |
| When it happens | First step, at registration | Applied for at or after registration; granted later, only once the insurer has filed proof of liability cover and the carrier has a process agent (BOC-3) on file |
| What it means for a seller | A new business that is setting up | A business that can start booking loads now |
Why ELD, factoring and fuel-card sellers want the authority-granted moment
Until its authority is active, a for-hire interstate carrier cannot legally haul its first load for a customer. The day it turns active, it starts spending:
- Fuel cards: the first loads mean the first fuel stops, and a new fleet with no credit history shops for a card that will approve it.
- ELDs: most interstate drivers who must keep hours-of-service records have to use an electronic logging device from their first trip.
- Factoring: brokers and shippers often pay in 30 days or more, and a new carrier needs cash for fuel and payroll before then.
Insurance agents are the exception: they want the carrier before it turns active, while it still has no insurance filing on file with FMCSA, because the policy is what unlocks the authority.
How our weekly file shows it
Every row in our weekly file has an Authority Status column and, when FMCSA has assigned one, an MC Number. We take both from FMCSA's Motus authority data on the day we build the file. In the file for the week ending 2026-10-25 (3,970 carriers registered 2026-10-05 to 2026-10-23), 1,982 rows had an MC number:
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Authority Status | Carriers | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Pending | 1,593 | Applied for carrier authority; not granted yet |
| Active | 207 | Carrier authority granted; can haul for-hire across state lines |
| None - for-hire interstate, not applied yet | 83 | Says it is for-hire interstate but has no authority application |
| Pending / Active (broker or freight forwarder) | 147 | Broker or forwarder authority: 127 pending, 20 active |
| Not required (intrastate) | 1,512 | Stays inside one state; no federal authority needed |
| Not required (private or exempt carrier) | 393 | Hauls its own goods or exempt cargo |
| Withdrawn (any kind) | 35 | Application withdrawn |
All but one of the 207 active carriers already had an insurance filing on file. Of the 1,593 pending carriers, 1,514 had no insurance filing on file with FMCSA yet.
How to use it: sell ELDs, fuel cards or factoring? Filter Authority Status to Active to call carriers that can haul today, then work the Pending rows as next month's pipeline. Sell insurance? Filter to Pending and Insurance On File No.
A dedicated "authority granted" feed is planned
Our file comes once a week and lists each carrier once, soon after it registers. Most carriers in it are still pending, and the file does not tell you later when a pending carrier's authority is granted. We plan a separate feed of carriers whose authority turned active each week, built from FMCSA's authority history data. It has no launch date yet and is not part of the $29 file today. Want to hear when it starts? Email [email protected].
Today, the weekly file gets you both groups in one place: the newly registered carriers, with their authority status as of the build day. See the page for ELD and fuel-card sellers or how the free FMCSA data compares.
More: New DOT leads, this week's file and state counts · Compare eight new-carrier lead services · Guide: how to find and reach newly registered trucking companies
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Source of our data: the FMCSA Company Census File and FMCSA's Motus operating-authority and insurance datasets on data.transportation.gov, public US federal records. Contact details are as filed by each carrier and are not verified by FMCSA. "No" in Insurance On File means no insurance filing on file with FMCSA yet; a carrier may have bound a policy whose filing has not posted. Buyers are responsible for following TCPA, CAN-SPAM and state telemarketing rules when contacting these businesses. Rasengan LLC is a private company. Not affiliated with FMCSA, USDOT or any government agency.