WASHINGTON The process of replacing the Single State Registration System with a new program may be on the verge of turning into a fiasco.

Even though the federal rulemaking process has begun to implement the new Unified Carrier Registration Agreement and the collection of UCRA fees (see May 1 Bus & Motorcoach News), the board coordinating and overseeing the transition is reporting myriad problems.

During a conference call conducted late last month, it was revealed that the work of the board is being hampered by a lack of funding.

UCRA procedures have been drafted to guide the states and industry through the programs new registration and collection process, and a start has been made on the computer systems needed to coordinate the collection and exchange of UCRA information among the states and with the U.S. Department of Transportation.

But that is only part of what needs to be done, those participating in the conference call were told. The problem is theres no money with which to get the work completed.

Consequently, the administration of the UCRA fees for the next couple of years may proceed in a "somewhat makeshift fashion," conference call participants were told. How exactly that will translate bureaucratically and administratively among the states that have signed up for the UCRA is anybodys guess. But it may not be pretty.

Still, there are bureaucrats within the USDOT who think the program still could be off the ground by mid-summer. Stay tuned.

The UCRA board has scheduled another conference call next week and its members are to meet in person in Indianapolis June 11-12.

The 2005 federal highway and public transportation re-authorization bill repealed the Single State Registration System, and provided for the replacement of the revenue states got from the SSRS and related programs through the new UCRA.