Counting power units for UCR
The two permitted methods, which twelve months the second one means, and what counts as a power unit.
Last reviewed
I. Two permitted methods
- Method A — your latest MCS-150
- The power-unit count on your most recent MCS-150 or MCSA-1 filing. Simplest, and the one most carriers use.
- Method B — the twelve-month measuring period
- The power units you operated during July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025. Use this when your fleet has changed materially since the MCS-150 was filed.
II. What counts as a power unit
Self-propelled vehicles: trucks, tractors, buses. Each one counts once, however many trailers it pulls in a year.
Trailers, chassis and other towed equipment. Vehicles under a long-term lease are counted by whoever the lease makes responsible — count them once between you, not twice.
III. A count of zero
Zero does not exempt you. A broker, freight forwarder or leasing company with no vehicles of its own still registers, at the lowest bracket. A carrier that genuinely operated nothing during the measuring period may report zero — but not if the business was registered after that period ended, because there was no period in which to have operated nothing.
Ready when you are
We read your company from the public federal register, so the form is mostly filled in before you start.
File your 2026 UCR — from $96.00