CDL self-reporting: what your state still requires
On 22 July 2026 FMCSA deleted the federal rule telling you to report your convictions to your own state. It did not delete the state laws that say the same thing — and it declined to tell anyone which states those are.
“FMCSA agrees with the comment from NAPT that having the information on which States continue to require drivers to notify their SDLAs of convictions outside of their State of domicile would be helpful. However, FMCSA will not be compiling this list. … Nothing in this rule absolves a CDL holder from having to comply with a State requirement if that requirement exists.”
FR 2026-12449, "Removal of Self-Reporting Requirement"
California
Yes — California still requires you to tell the state yourself.
- Deadline
- 30 days
- Notify
- California DMV — Abstract Processing Unit M/S J232, P.O. Box 942890, Sacramento CA 94290-0001
- Form
- DL 535 — Report of Out-of-State Traffic Conviction by a Commercial Driver
- Applies to
- Convictions in other states
Citation: Cal. Veh. Code §15220 · verified 2026-08-12
“Any driver of a commercial motor vehicle who has a driver’s license issued by the department, and who is convicted of any offense involving the safe operation of a motor vehicle in any other state, shall notify the department, in the manner provided by the department, of the conviction within 30 days of the date of conviction.”
California also imposes its own employer-notification duty (30 days), separate from the federal one below.
Form DL 535 is filed by the driver, not the employer, and covers convictions in any vehicle. The separate employer duty (§15222) is NOT limited to out-of-state convictions. Note DL 535 justifies itself by citing the federal Act, so the form may be revised — the state duty in §15220 stands on its own regardless.
Everywhere: you still have to tell your employer
This did not change in July. 49 CFR §383.31 still requires a CDL holder convicted of a traffic violation — in any vehicle, not just a truck, and anything other than a parking ticket — to notify their current employer in writing within 30 days.
The notice has to carry all seven of these:
- Driver's full name
- Driver's license number
- Date of conviction
- The specific offense(s), and any suspension, revocation or cancellation that resulted
- Whether the violation was in a commercial motor vehicle
- Location of offense
- Driver's signature
49 CFR §383.31 · verified 2026-08-12
This is journalism, not legal advice. Every answer links to the statute so you can read it yourself — do that before you act, and confirm with your state licensing agency if anything here decides something expensive. Rules change; each row carries the date we last checked it.