A federal rulemaking that's been in the works for years is finally moving toward a new proposal, and depending on how it lands, it could be one of the most significant regulatory shifts for owner-operators in recent memory. Or it could change very little. Here's what's happening and why it matters.
A Right That Exists on Paper But Not Always in Practice
At the center of this issue is a federal regulation that's been on the books since 1980. It requires freight brokers to keep a record of every transaction and gives each party to that transaction — including the carrier who hauled the load — the right to review it. In plain terms, an owner-operator has had the legal right to see what a broker billed the shipper for decades.
In practice, that right has been largely unenforceable. Brokers have gotten around it in two main ways: by requiring carriers to waive their review rights as a condition of doing business, or by simply not producing the records and waiting to see if the carrier pushes back. Most don't. The right exists in the law and largely doesn't exist on the ground.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has been working to close that gap since 2020, and a new supplemental proposal is expected this month.
Why Carriers Have Been Fighting for This
The argument from the carrier side isn't complicated: they're not asking for a new right — they're asking for one they already have to actually be enforceable.
The practical implications break down into a few key areas.
The waiver problem is the most fundamental. A right you're required to sign away before you can access a broker's freight isn't worth much. If the new rule prohibits those waivers, every small carrier contract gets rewritten in a meaningful way.
Claims disputes are another. When a broker deducts money from a settlement for a supposed shortage, damage, or service failure, carriers often have to argue against a number they can't verify. Access to the full transaction record changes what's disputable.
Fraud and double brokering also factor in. A documented, electronic record of who brokered what to whom has value in an environment where cargo theft and fraudulent load schemes have become genuine operational risks.
And then there's the negotiation angle. Carriers have long argued that agreeing to a rate without knowing what the freight actually pays puts them at a structural disadvantage. Transparency is what makes the negotiation a real one.
The Other Side of the Argument
The broker industry's position deserves a fair hearing too.
Their core argument is that the 1980 regulation was written for a different market structure — one where brokers acted as commissioned agents for carriers rather than principals buying and reselling transportation at their own risk. The model has changed, they argue, and the rule doesn't fit the current reality.
On a more practical level, brokers point out that many of their shipper agreements include confidentiality provisions — shippers don't want their transportation costs visible to competitors. Requiring carriers to receive that information puts brokers in conflict between a federal disclosure obligation and a private confidentiality contract.
There's also a pointed question that neither side fully addresses: what does a carrier actually do with the information after the fact? The rate was already agreed to. The load has already been delivered. A transaction record showing the broker earned a larger margin than expected informs the next negotiation — if there is one. Nothing in a transparency rule requires a broker to keep offering freight to a carrier who regularly demands records.
What It Means in Practice — and What to Do Now
The proposal expected this month is not a final rule. It opens a comment period, which leads to review, which leads to a final rule, which then has a compliance date. The timeline has already slipped once. Anyone treating this as a done deal should pump the brakes.
That said, there are practical steps worth taking regardless of how the rule lands:
Pull up your current broker agreements and find the waiver language — it's in most of them. Knowing which contracts contain a rights waiver tells you exactly which relationships would change if waivers get banned.
When you make a records request, do it in writing and keep the date. Any final rule that includes a response clock only helps carriers who can document when the clock started.
And keep it in proportion. Transparency is a tool for evaluating broker relationships and defending against claims. It won't set a rate floor or make an unprofitable lane work. The carriers who benefit most from seeing a broker's numbers are the ones who already know their own cost per mile cold.
Drive for a Carrier That Doesn't Play Games
All of this highlights something worth thinking about more broadly: the difference between hauling freight through a broker on the spot market versus driving for an asset-based carrier with direct shipper relationships and consistent freight.
At ProSport Express, our drivers don't worry about broker margins or transaction records — because our freight comes from long-term customer relationships backed by our own owned assets. There's no middleman taking a cut between what the shipper pays and what our drivers earn. Just consistent miles, professional equipment, and a company that's been at this since 2008.
We're hiring CDL drivers now for:
- OTR Teams & Solo — Long-haul consistency, competitive pay
- Dedicated — Predictable routes, reliable home time
- Expedited — Fast freight, strong earnings
- Regional — Great miles with more time at home
- Local — Home every day, no exceptions
If you're tired of navigating the spot market and want to drive for a company with direct freight and real stability, let's talk.
Apply at prosportexpress.com or call 1-833-PRO-4YOU.
ProSport Express — We Don't Just Hire Drivers. We Keep Them.
