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31
Both, 26.1%
Cost Analysis
The cost data were primarily collected through the online
application process of the issuing agency. Many of the creden-
tials had a specific cost stated on the agency Web site. The cre-
dentials, costs, and other associated data for 10 of the identified
credentials are shown in Table 3-7.
The costs associated with each credential were limited to
North, 65.2
2%
the monetary requirement to obtain the credential. In some
South, 8.7% cases, additional costs existed for various purposes, including
replacement fees or varied rates for qualifying applicants. For
instance, the cost to acquire a TWIC can be reduced if the
applicant already possesses several qualifying credentials that
Figure 3-17. FAST credential designations. required a security threat assessment. Should an applicant
exercise that option, the expiration date will be 5 years from the
designations. Additionally, 26.1% (6 respondents) held both issue date of the qualifying credential, rather than 5 years from
North and South designations (Figure 3-17). the issuance of the TWIC. The cost of the SIDA badges is vari-
Three respondents who indicated they held a FUPAC pro- able, and according to the issuing airport. The USPS credential
vided feedback. Again, concerns focused on the redundancies cost is determined by contract with the supplier company, not
seen within the system. Comments regarding the FUPAC are the individual. Because of these factors, cost data are difficult
as follows: to report. As part of the cost data collection effort, the research
team included the time period that the credential was valid.
· "Redundant gouging of my hard-earned dollars to do what Most credentials are valid for 5 years. The passport and CDL
my TWIC and CDL-HME already do. Clearly a cash cow both last 10 years before renewal is required (assuming the cre-
for the port authority and nothing else." dential-holder is 16 years or older for the passport). However,
· "[State name redacted] port's background checks are unnec- the HME portion of the CDL-HME must be renewed every
essary, redundant, expensive, and time consuming." 5 years, regardless of CDL renewal.
· "Why did I have to get this thing[? I] already have a CDL Since each state (and the District of Columbia) issues a
[with] HME; for that matter why did I have to get the TWIC separate CDL-HME credential, the research team placed
when I ALREADY HAVE A CDL [with] HME????? Does the cost data in a separate cost table. Table E-1 (see Appen-
anyone realize what this is costing the drivers?" dix E) includes both the costs of a new CDL credential with
an HME endorsement as well as the costs for the threat
In regard to the MMC, respondents only provided clari- assessment application for each state (and the District of
fication as to the process for obtaining the credential. Both Columbia). The credential fees for a CDL-HME (includ-
comments indicated that no travel time was required to ing threat assessment fees) ranged from a low of $107.25
obtain the credential, which was delivered via mail to a (North Dakota) to a high of $326.25 (New York). Figure 3-18
home address. The same comment was made for the MMD. provides the CDL count by cost range (excluding the cost
However, it also was noted that the MMD should not be for a threat assessment) for all 50 states and the District of
required since the MMC is in place. The comment associ- Columbia.
ated with the SIDA simply indicated the agency affiliation of
the respondent. Table 3-7. Credential costs.
When provided an opportunity to comment on additional
credentials, redundancy was again the focus. Feedback pro- Credential Stated Costs Valid for (Years)
*
vided by respondents included the following: SIDA $91.33 2
Passport $100.00 10
· "Testing required every 2 years, same test over and over." TWIC $132.50 5
· "It's not about getting the credential as much as it is about MMD $100.00 5
MMC $100.00 5
duplicative efforts and one agency in the same department
FAST $50.00 5
not [accepting] the information from another in the same
USPS Unavailable 4
department. Not just security issues either, i.e., physicals are
NEXUS $50.00 5
a prime example--FAA, FMCSA, and USCG, to my knowl- SENTRI $122.25 5
edge, [none] of them [accept] this other at any level. [This CAC Unavailable 3
causes] many in [state name redacted] heartburn." *SIDA costs are an arithmetic mean, see Appendix F.
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32
30
24
Use Cases
25
20 To better understand the user costs of credentialing, an
Count
15 11
additional cost analysis was conducted with self-reported costs
10 8 of specific HazMat transportation workers. The use cases are
5 2 3 2 drawn from the Web-based survey and telephone interviews
0 1
0 with credential-holders. The use cases served two purposes.
First, they identified the most commonly held combinations of
credentials as identified by Web survey respondents and asso-
ciated costs. Second, through interviews with current CMV
Cost drivers, out-of-pocket costs and time-to-obtain costs were
Figure 3-18. Counts by CDL Cost Range. explored.
Commonly held credentials were identified based upon a
review of the HazMat Security Credential Survey responses.
Although the majority of states charge between $25 and $50 Survey respondents were asked if they currently held the fol-
for the CDL and HazMat endorsement, there is some amount lowing credentials: CDL-HME, TWIC, FAST, FUPAC, MMC,
of variation throughout the country. This appears to be due to MMD, MML, NEXUS, SENTRI, SIDA, and other. Respon-
variation in how each state structures its fees for licensing. In dents' answers revealed 55 combinations of credentials. Due
some cases the fee is mandated by state statute and thus a to the "other" option, 43 of the identified combinations were
change to the fee requires legislative action. An increase in this associated with only one respondent each. Looking at the 12
fee may be politically untenable for state politicians. In other most common credentials, with input from the 43 other com-
states the fee structure is required to reflect the cost to the state, binations, 5 combinations of credentials were chosen for fur-
and as such must continuously increase as the cost to the state ther analysis. The combinations were chosen because they reflect
increases. Federally mandated security threat assessment fees the most commonly held credential combinations as well as
are shown in Figure 3-19. combinations that would provide a multimodal perspective.
When compared to the cost for the CDL, the variation is cer- Applying cost data to the most commonly held credentials
tainly less. This is most likely due to the fee structure originally provides a snapshot of the costs incurred by survey respon-
set at the federal level. The few instances that vary are likely due dents (Table 3-8). The combined costs range from $232.50 to
to states that opted out of having the TSA collect the required $434.72.
data, and potentially are the result of additional processing at Five individuals were identified for follow-up interviews.
the issuing agency's prerogative. The five individuals represented the highway/tractor-trailer
Nine of the eleven identified credentials under consideration mode and were CMV drivers. Four individuals were male and
required fingerprinting to acquire. Thus, at least some of the one was female. Mean years of experience was 20.7 years, with
costs associated with each credential cover the fingerprinting the median years of experience being 21.5 years. The mean age
fee. Additionally, the requirements for criminal history record of responders was 56 and the median age was 58. The mean
checks, criminal background checks, or security threat assess- salary was approximately $53,000, which converts to an aver-
ments for each of the credentials contribute to the total cost of age hourly wage of $25.50. Four of the individuals spoken to
the credential. held CDL-HME, TWIC, and U.S. passport credentials. One
individual held a CDL-HME, a TWIC, and a credential issued
by a local authority.
45 42
40
All interviewees held CDL-HMEs. The time it took them to
35 obtain the CDL-HME ranged from 1 hour to 3 or 4 months.
30
Count
25
Four responded that it took 20 to 30 minutes to complete the
20 application. One responded that it took all day, but that
15 included the testing portion of the application as well. On
10 3
5 1 2 0 1 1 0 1 average, the CDL-HME cost $100, for which only one received
0 reimbursement. Although the application process was reported
to be quick and fairly simple (especially if all data were gath-
ered prior to completing the form), the cost and time associated
with fingerprinting were noted. For example, one respondent
Cost has had his fingerprints taken four times, which required a
Figure 3-19. Counts by threat assessment cost range. 300-mile round trip each time.
