International Board of Directors Meeting Summary


September 22-23, 2024

AAMVA’s Board of Directors convened in-person September 22 – 23 in Atlanta, GA to discuss and act upon strategic initiatives of the organization. Many of the topics covered and the approved Board actions are summarized below. These are not formal meeting minutes. For information on approved minutes from past meetings, contact Member Services.

Chair Spencer R. Moore shared with the Board a recap of his work as Chair since they met in June, including time meeting with all the regions as well as speaking at the Governors Highway Safety Association Conference and Identity Week in Washington, DC. 

Similarly, Ian Grossman provided a President & CEO report, including an update on our work with FMCSA to finalize an updated CDLIS Operating Agreement and the implementation status of the updated organization model.  This included introducing the Board to the updated AAMVA leadership team. 


 

Financial Matters

Following the Board’s August meeting to approve the FY2025 budget, the report from Treasurer Gabriel Robinson focused on a series of policy updates and affirmations. This included the Reserves Policy, the FY2025 Operating Reserve, and the FY2025 IT Systems Modernization Reserve, all of which were affirmed as is with minor language updates.  

The Board voted to sunset telecommunication credits beginning in 2028, coinciding with when many jurisdictions will have migrated to the new REST interface allowing for an internet connection to AAMVA services. Any jurisdiction not yet converted to REST by January 2028, will be responsible for their telecommunication fees based on their specific SD-WAN site(s) configuration.

The Board was informed AAMVA has signed (as approved by the Board) a lease for a new Headquarters at 4250 North Fairfax Drive, effective October 1, 2025. Space planning is underway with key stakeholders.


Strategic Governance

Surface Transportation Reauthorization

The Board discussed the upcoming Congressional activity surrounding the Surface Transportation Reauthorization. This current Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is set to expire in 2026. While the expiration date is more than a year away, Congressional staff have begun drafting and negotiating core policy issue areas for inclusion in the next reauthorization and AAMVA is developing initial priorities in coordination with common stakeholders. 

Driver

The Driver Committee reported on their FY2024 success and highlighted some key FY2025 initiatives:

  • Continued updates to the modernized CDL training and test process.
  • Production of two Human Trafficking training modules, one for CDL applicants and one for jurisdiction staff that focuses on what Human Trafficking is, how to spot and report it, and where it may intersect with the work of jurisdiction members. 
  • Updates to the Non-commercial Model Driver Testing Systems, including for “Sharing the Road with Motorcycles”, Marijuana, Opioids, and “Move Over” laws.

The Board reviewed the work of the State-to-State Service, including the recent additions of New York and New Jersey, bringing the total to 41 jurisdictions with two more scheduled to join by the end of 2024. The S2S Executive Committee is reviewing the recently updated Ignition Interlock Best Practices developed to consider the impact on operational reciprocity. 

As it relates to the series of upcoming FMCSA Mandate deadlines: 

  • Exclusive Electronic Exchange (compliance date August 22, 2024): 47 of 51 jurisdictions have completed testing and 3 jurisdictions are scheduled to complete by November 2024.
  • Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse (compliance date November 18, 2024; Jurisdictions may choose between a direct interface via FMCSA or via CDLIS): For the CDLIS option, 8 of 20 planned jurisdictions have completed testing for the CDLIS option - 9 are scheduled to complete prior to the compliance date; 3 more scheduled to complete by June 2025.
  • National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners (compliance date June 23, 2025; 2 new CDLIS transactions establish integration between jurisdictions and the NRCME): 34 jurisdictions are scheduled to complete testing prior to the compliance date; 1 jurisdiction scheduled after compliance date - 16 yet to schedule.


Vehicle

The Vehicle Committee shared significant work done in FY2024 and discussed plans for the coming year:

  • Development and implementation of an e-Title proof of concept for the interstate transfer of vehicle title ownership. The project team composed of Arizona, Maryland, Utah, and West Virginia will continue weekly meetings with a goal of rolling out a proof of concept by late 2024. More jurisdictions and stakeholders will be invited to participate at key milestones of the project to ensure the proposed solutions can be implemented nationwide.
  • Produce a series of vehicle titling toolkits to inform motor vehicle agencies of available elements for solutions to electronic vehicle titling. This will include a scorecard to assist agencies in prioritizing steps to move to fully electronic vehicle tilting. 
  • Conduct outreach and education to various groups and associations to update them on the 4th Edition AV Guidelines and solicit feedback for future research, especially regarding advanced driver assistance systems and related aftermarket technology which will aid in the areas of driver testing and law enforcement vehicle interaction. 


Law Enforcement

The Law Enforcement Committee reported on their FY2024 accomplishments and discussed objectives for FY2025.  The Board approved the publishing of the Preventing, Detecting and Investigating Cyber-Digital Fraud Whitepaper, by the Cyber-Digital Fraud Working Group and will be published in the coming weeks.


Identity Management

The Board was briefed on the Committee’s FY2024 accomplishments and the work planned for the coming year, including plans to:

  • Publish an updated Card Design Standard in early 2025.  Significant topics include transparency and alignment of Human and Machine-readable information, added information regarding privacy, synchronization with the mDL Implementation guidelines, and various data field improvements.
  • Modernize the Design Principles and Guidelines for Secure DL/ID Cards document. This document, last updated in 2014, is used with the Card Design Standard to help jurisdictions implement a secure physical card harder for nefarious actors to recreate and that can be authenticated by relying parties. 
  • Continue to update the mDL Implementation Guidelines as necessary.  The newest version (1.3) was published in September. 1.3 updates include the use of an mDL over the Internet, changes in mDL data fields, and how to render a permit as an mDL.
  • Continue to expand the Digital Trust Service (DTS) with new committee approved jurisdictional keys.  The committee will also focus on requirements for a post-MVP DTS as well as new features for improvement and functionality.  These activities will include exploration of global interoperability by working with Austroads, E-reg, and others to share public keys.
  • Expand mDL Training Modules; the second module ‘mDL Basics’ in scheduled for an early 2025 release and additional modules as they become available.
  • Implement fraud fighting enhancements to the Driver License Data Verification product, including three new data fields for verification: Driving Status, Photo Match, and REAL ID Indicator. The AAMVA team reviewed market use case plans and the status of the thirty-six DLDV partners.


Information Technology 

The Board reviewed the status of the legacy technology sunset deadlines. Eighteen jurisdictions are expected to still be using UNI mainframe software beyond the sunset date. AAMVA will continue to work with members to ensure proper contingency plans are in place to ensure continuity of service.

Continuing in its effort to review and simplify the complexity of AAMVA operations, the Board approved two new IT Advisory Committee (ITAC) sunset recommendations effective January 2028:

  1. The batch AMIE format will sunset and all states using AMIE for batch transmission will need to convert to the existing fixed length file format or to a new JSON format.    
  2. The SOAP/NIEM interface will sunset and all states using the SOAP/NIEM interface will need to convert to REST.

The ITAC reported that the AAMVA team started a project to explore how Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning can be used to improve AAMVA’s operations. The intent is to understand AI technologies in their various forms to better understand: the development and operational implications, legal, ethical, and governance considerations, and cost implications. This experience will also help AAMVA staff to assess whether some of the insights gained can also be shared with the jurisdictions during a future CIO roundtable webinar.

The SD-WAN deployment continues to make progress with the first four jurisdictions (SD, LA, DE, MN) having migrated, four have been more ordered (IL, TX, OR, FAST-site 1) and fourteen (WI, IA, NM, KS, NE, PA, WV, FAST-site 2) , NDR, SC, NV, WY, RI, and a 3rd party) are actively in the pipeline. All sites will be required to upgrade by July 2026 as the current Cisco routers will be out of support at that time.


U.S. Federal Government Partners

Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

The TSA REAL ID Office provided updates on current REAL ID adoption rates with a 55% adoption rate nationally, 77% acceptable identification at checkpoint and 66% of passengers providing REAL ID compliant driver’s licenses out of all driver’s licenses presented. REAL ID awareness in general has been surveyed at 74-75%. TSA has issued its “phased enforcement” Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) with comments due on October 15. This NPRM details how federal agencies may opt to incrementally enforce REAL ID access requirements through May 2027. They additionally provided an update on the recertification process having completed 10 jurisdictions and planning on an additional 10-15 in the next group. 

TSA has developed a legal advisory regarding the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Release Card and its acceptability for REAL ID purposes that the agency has communicated to the states and to the BOP. TSA also discussed legal regulatory interpretation on the issue of states providing permits or other credentials on REAL ID compliant templates and their view that this runs contrary to regulatory requirements against one individual holding more than on REAL ID compliant credential. 


United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)  

USCIS provided an update on the SAVE system, noting that the response time for manual cases has returned to 3.5 days from the previous 2022 backlog time of 40 business days response time. Internally, USCIS is aligning SAVE functionally within the organization with hopes that once alignment has been completed, it will allow for full organizational support for the system. USCIS continues to work on system availability and schedules any known outages for minimal impacts on the states. SAVE has made some incremental changes to case information available as part of first-step verifications, including the ability to see whether an individual has been not approved versus case pending. USCIS is looking to integrate data into a Person-Centric Information System (PCIS) that would serve as a one-stop shop for immigration data.


Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)

FMCSA provided updates on the agency’s contributions to the National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) and highlighted the landmark investments being made in transportation safety through IIJA. They highlighted the agency’s recent activity with respect to: The Women in Trucking Advisory Committee; The Truck Leasing Task Force; Human Trafficking; and Distracted Driving. FMCSA cited recent regulatory activity under consideration at the agency, including Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) for Heavy Vehicles; ; Automated Driving Systems for Commercial Vehicles; Speed Limiters for Commercial Vehicles; and Updates to FMCSA’s Carrier Fitness Methodology. FMCSA discussed Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) implementation and the recently added requirements that training providers meet any additional state requirements before being added to the certified registry. 


National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 

NHTSA shared updated fatality statistics and noted a 3.2% decrease in total traffic deaths in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. NHTSA highlighted that while passenger car fatalities had decreased an increasing number of motorcyclists were killed in crashes, with latest data showing a 12 percent increase in year over year statistics. NHTSA highlighted that the National Office of Emergency Medical Services is housed in their agency and is developing a program providing whole blood transfusions at traffic crashes and other crime scenes to increase post-crash survivability. AAMVA and NHTSA continue to work collaboratively on the Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC) which provides a standardized set of data variables to describe motor vehicle traffic crashes. 

NHTSA provided updates to existing formula grants, including nearly 800 million to state highway offices, some of which may be made available for 405(c) state traffic safety information system improvement grants. NHTSA also provided additional grant source funding for systems that may be available through collaboration with State Highway Safety Offices for data grants such as the agency’s State Electronic Data Collection program. 


Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 

The FHWA Office of Policy Information described their recent work with respect to the 500 Series Data Programs. FHWA is seeking to modify their collections process through an updated interaction with the states. That process was detailed in a FHWA regulatory notice entitled, “Enhanced Driver Licensing and Vehicle Registration Data Reporting Specifications for 500-Series Program Purposes.” The revised process would transition from the current annual submission of aggregate data on registered motor vehicles and licensed drivers from the states to an annual submission of raw registered vehicle and licensed driver data. FHWA cited data quality concerns and the ability to support various emerging safety and research initiatives as the rationale for the change. The target year for implementation of this change is 2028 using data year 2027. States wishing to comment on this proposal must do so through the above docket by October 21. Targeted data elements for the increased raw data submissions include:

For Vehicles: Vehicle Identification Number (VIN); Vehicle Make; Vehicle Model: Body Type; State of Registered Vehicle; Jurisdiction for Registered Vehicle (County FIPS Code); Active Status Duration (in days); Registration Type (Optional Inclusion); and Zip Code of Registered Vehicle (Optional Inclusion).

For Drivers: Class of Licensed Driver; Endorsement; State of Licensure; Jurisdiction of Licensed Driver (County FIPS Code); Age of Driver; Sex of Driver; Active Status Duration (in Days); Race/Ethnicity of Driver (Optional Inclusion); Zip Code of Driver (Optional Inclusion).


Partner Organizations

Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA)

CCMTA is approaching their 85th year as an organization and is ready to launch a new operational plan. As they prepare, CCMTA has spent the last year focusing on good governance and supporting member development. CCMTA is developing continued contributions towards its Road Safety Strategy – Something Canada has worked towards since 1996. As a minimum standards setting body, CCMTA is looking at revitalizing National Safety Code (NSC) 6 regarding determining driver fitness and will be also looking at NSC-7 (Carrier and Driver Profiles), NSC-14 (Safety Rating) and NSC-15 (Facility Audits). CCMTA is also looking into carriers with problematic safety records operating across jurisdictions and strengthening its data strategy.


International Registration Plan, Inc. (IRP)  

IRP reported that they are financially sound and have transitioned to a fully remote workplace. IRP has been working on their strategic plan with a focus on improved communications to membership and industry. IRP is transitioning to a new learning management system and platform as well as a new system to replace the old IRP data repository. IRP has established a “Place of Business” working group as well as a “Mileage Based User Fee” working group that they hope will have some interaction with the AAMVA membership. 


Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA)  

CVSA identified two areas of overlap with the AAMVA community – their Level VIII inspection program and their autonomous vehicle inspection program.  The volume of expected transactions is exponential on the number of data transactions associated with inspections and CVSA wanted to ensure the AAMVA membership was prepared for increased bandwidth on data verifications. CVSA is also exploring a proactive autonomous vehicle inspection program whereby trained mechanics would conduct vehicle related inspections on vehicles 24 hours prior to the vehicles deploying on public roadways. Data on those inspections would indicate the timeliness of inspections associated with each vehicle. 


EReg/EUCARIS

EReg has been incorporated as a non-profit legal entity according to Belgian Law. EReg is exploring registration procedures related to data exchange models and practical guidelines, re-registration, harmonization, and standardization, and dynamic vehicle characteristics. EReg is also exploring international data exchange and data protection. 


Wrap-up and Feedback

The Board of Directors is committed to governing AAMVA in the interest of jurisdiction members. If you have a question about this meeting, or if you have a topic you would like the Board to consider, contact Ian Grossman or contact a Board member through AAMVA’s member directory.