RoadsideProof 
What is DataQs?
DataQs is the system where a carrier files a Request for Data Review about FMCSA data. Corrections to FMCSA data go through the Request for Data Review process.
Who files and signs the request?
We do not file for you. You file from your own account and you sign it, and that signature carries 18 U.S.C. 1001.
What documents can I prepare for the check?
For an inspection request, upload the inspection report and supporting documents. For a CPDP crash request, upload the police accident report (PAR) and supporting evidence. Check each required value against its source and confirm it.
Why can removing a violation leave the measure unchanged?
If the sum still reaches the 30-point cap after a violation is removed, the inspection's contribution is unchanged. The effect of removing a violation is the difference between the measure with it and the measure without it, keeping the other snapshot data fixed.
How long does an inspection count in SMS?
SMS uses a 24-month inspection window. The time weight is ×3 through 6 months back from the snapshot date, ×2 for more than 6 through 12 months back, and ×1 for more than 12 through 24 months back. Older inspections are outside that snapshot's calculation window. A lower time weight need not lower the measure because the relevant-inspection denominator changes too.
What if there is no court outcome document?
For an adjudicated-citation request, without sufficient verifiable disposition documents, the court outcome remains unknown. A missing document is not evidence of a conviction, dismissal, or not-guilty finding (Analyst Guide §§5.5–5.6). A wrong-carrier, duplicate, driver, VIN or other record-error request instead needs evidence of the disputed entry; it does not require a court disposition merely because it is an RDR.
Does RoadsideProof promise an agency outcome?
We do not promise an outcome. The burden of proof is on the filer. The revised State DataQs process applies to requests submitted on or after September 18, 2026. It is not retroactive and does not establish deadlines for Federal reviews. Its stages are Initial Review, Reconsideration, and Final Review. FMCSA considers the State's RDR decision final after Final Review is completed; this is separate from a court's disposition of a citation.
What does the report say about my position?
For property carriers, relative percentiles and alerts are withheld from the public SMS display. Public measures are available for Unsafe Driving, HOS Compliance, Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol and Vehicle Maintenance; Crash Indicator and HM Compliance results are not public. Carriers can sign in through their own FMCSA Portal account to view complete SMS results (SMS Methodology p. 1-2, note 6; FMCSA FAST Act guidance). Our estimate of your position against the intervention threshold, shown as a range rather than a single number. This is our estimate from public FMCSA data, not an official FMCSA percentile. Public data do not provide complete official SMS results for property carriers. Use your own account; RoadsideProof never asks for FMCSA Portal, DataQs or Login.gov credentials.
What are the State's and filer's DataQs deadlines?
The revised State DataQs process applies to requests submitted on or after September 18, 2026. It is not retroactive and does not establish deadlines for Federal reviews. Calendar days: Initial Review 21 (including opening within 7), Reconsideration 21, Final Review 45; ask for the next stage within 30 days of the prior State decision and answer an information request within 14. A request for information pauses the State clock; it resumes with time remaining. Reopening after nonresponse gives the same stage its full time; entirely new, unrequested, relevant evidence returns to Initial Review. Address the previous decision’s reasons in an appeal. Finality follows Final Review, and a missed deadline is not approval. These periods do not set Federal review deadlines.
How long after an inspection can I request a DataQs review?
The revised State DataQs process applies to requests submitted on or after September 18, 2026. It is not retroactive and does not establish deadlines for Federal reviews. The 2026 notice requires States to accept and conduct a good-faith review of inspection RDRs submitted within 3 years of the inspection and crash RDRs within 5 years of the crash (91 FR 20566).
My citation was dismissed. Does the violation come off?
After verification, a not-guilty finding or dismissal without a fine or punitive court costs excludes the associated violation from SMS and PSP. A dismissal with a fine or punitive court costs is retained as a conviction. Incidental expenses imposed regardless of outcome do not count as punitive court costs. MCMIS retains the annotated record (79 FR 32494–32495).
What if the court case is pending or deferred?
A case held in abeyance without payment of fines or court costs is not fully adjudicated. The analyst does not change the citation adjudication record until sufficient documentation confirms the final disposition (Analyst Guide §5.6, p. 42). The Analyst Guide treats costs or fees imposed for a diversion program as court costs qualifying as a conviction (§5.4, p. 40). A diversion or deferred-adjudication label alone does not establish a final disposition; a pending case and a documented final outcome must be distinguished.
What does a conviction of a different or original charge change?
The inspection is annotated for conviction of a different charge in SMS and PSP. In SMS, severity becomes 1 with no additional OOS weight (79 FR 32495; SMS Methodology p. 3-15, note 19). The violation remains in SMS and PSP under the adjudicated-citation policy. That conviction alone is not a basis for exclusion under this policy; a separate error in the inspection record requires its own supporting evidence (Analyst Guide §§5.6, 5.9).
Sources and factual review
Editorial source check: .
- FMCSA DataQs · registration and role-specific sign-in instructions · archived June 10, 2026, not a document revision date Archived copy of the checked edition
- FMCSA FAST Act guidance · Why did FMCSA make changes to the public display of SMS? · archived May 11, 2026, not a document revision date Archived copy of the checked edition
- FMCSA SMS · BASIC Status (Public Property Carrier View) · live display, not a document edition; no carrier figures reused
- FMCSA SMS Methodology v3.21 · methodology revised May 2026; document revised June 2026 · p. 1-2 note 6, pp. 2-3–2-9, Chapter 3 Archived copy of the checked edition
- FMCSA DataQs Analyst Guide · 2nd edition, December 2014 · Chapters 4–6 (requests, adjudicated citations and record errors) · §§5.4–5.9 Archived copy of the checked edition
- 79 FR 32491–32496 · June 5, 2014 · definitions and outcome table, pp. 32494–32495
- FMCSA State DataQs review requirements · 91 FR 20561–20568, April 16, 2026 · pp. 20563–20568
- FMCSA DataQs Update Fact Sheet · document dated September 15, 2026 · p. 1 (requests submitted from September 18, 2026; system updates)
Document dates and data snapshot dates are separate from this editorial review. This review does not validate production calculations, document processing or storage controls.
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