49 U.S.C. § 5903 — Prohibitions

(a) Providing Erroneous Information .— A person, To 1 whom section 5902(b) applies, tendering a loaded container or trailer must not provide erroneous information in a certification required by section 5902(b) of this title . (b) Transporting Prior to Receiving Certification.— (1) Presumption .— If no certification is received by a motor carrier before or when a loaded intermodal container or trailer is tendered to it, the motor carrier may presume that the gross cargo weight of the container or trailer is less than 29,001 pounds. (2) Copy of certification not required to accompany container or trailer .— Even if another rule says otherwise, any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, a copy of the certification required by section 5902(b) is not required to accompany the intermodal container or trailer. (c) Unlawful Coercion .— (1) A person must not coerce or attempt to coerce a person participating in intermodal transportation to transport a loaded container or trailer having an actual gross cargo weight of more than 29,000 pounds before the certification required by section 5902(b) of this title is provided. (2) A person, knowing that the weight of a loaded container or trailer or the weight of a tractor-trailer combination carrying the container or trailer is more than the weight allowed by applicable State law, must not coerce or attempt to coerce a carrier to transport the container or trailer or to operate the tractor-trailer combination in violation of that State law. (d) Notice to Leased Operators.— (1) Generally .— If a motor carrier knows that the gross cargo weight of an intermodal container or trailer subject to the certification requirements of section 5902(b) would result in a violation of applicable State gross vehicle weight laws, then— (A) the motor carrier must give notice to the operator of a vehicle which is leased by the vehicle operator to a motor carrier that transports an intermodal container or trailer of the gross cargo weight of the container or trailer as certified to the motor carrier under section 5902(b); (B) the notice must be provided to the operator before the operator being tendered the container or trailer; (C) the notice required by this subsection must be in writing, but may be transmitted electronically; and (D) the motor carrier must bear the burden of proof to establish that it tendered the required notice to the operator. (2) Reimbursement .— If the operator of a leased vehicle transporting a container or trailer subject to this chapter is fined because of a violation of a State’s gross vehicle weight laws or regulations and the lessee motor carrier cannot establish that it tendered to the operator the notice required by paragraph (1) of this subsection, then the operator must be entitled to reimbursement from the motor carrier in the amount of any fine and court costs resulting from the failure of the motor carrier to tender the notice to the operator.