CA CDL question

Go to the link I gave you in the earlier post....there is a phone number there....give them a call they can give you the info....or go to the DMV and get the real answer!

 

You can go to the West Sacramento Commercial DMV....take the Harbor Blvd exit (off 50/80), first street (on the North side of the over-crossing) take a right and they are on the left hand side about 200 yards down....just before and across from the International dealership.

 

Pretty sure it's the trailer gross-

'With a Commercial Class A License:

Any legal combination of vehicles, including
vehicles under Class B and Class C.


And You May Tow…

any single vehicle with a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of more than 10,000 lbs.
any trailer bus, with endorsement OR more than one vehicle, with endorsement.
any vehicles under Classes B and C."


http://dmv.ca.gov/pubs/comlhdbk/comlhdbk.pdf

You have to parse the wording. It's the trailer gross, not the combination gross.

Cali makes things harder to understand than it needs to be.

 

Any thing OVER 26,000 lbs GVW when pulling a combination
(trailer) requires a CL A lic. If you drive test in an automatic
truck, you will have a restriction of " Automatic Transmission"
only on your Lic. If your truck has NO air brakes, it will also
have a no air brake restriction on it...

 

A commercial vehicle is a motor vehicle or combination used for hire to transport passengers or property or which:

• Has a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 26,001 pounds or more
• Is designed, used, or maintained for carrying more than 10 passengers, including the driver
• Tows a vehicle or trailer, which has a GVWR of 10,001 pounds or more
• Transports hazardous materials, which requires placards
• Tows any combination of two trailers or vehicle and trailer

Copied from California DMV web site...

 

Then why does CA require the registration of a standard pick-up truck to be registered and licensed as "COML"....commercial?

I think you are meaning having a Class A license to operate. then what about the engines we use in the Fire Department....GVW 29,000. they can be operated with a non-commercial Class B.

Gotta love California.....can't get a straight answer to a simple question like...."Is this line straight?"....(example, the letter "S")... DMV would say YES!

 

Vt regs are almost like the above from the left coast, but not quite. They state that vehicle/combo over 26k means CDL needed. If you are over 26k AND the towed unit exceeds 10k then a class A is needed. Cali seems to say if the trailer is over the 10 k a CDL is needed.

Also, if you test with a tag trailer for the A cdl you will have a restriction (tag trailer only, no 5th wheel trailers)

 

Then why does CA require the registration of a standard pick-up truck to be registered and licensed as "COML"....commercial?

I think you are meaning having a Class A license to operate. then what about the engines we use in the Fire Department....GVW 29,000. they can be operated with a non-commercial Class B.

Gotta love California.....can't get a straight answer to a simple question like...."Is this line straight?"....(example, the letter "S")... DMV would say YES!
DMV is VERY flakey and does not enforce it own rules equally.
Where i live in NORCAL fire fighters are required to have a CL B if the rig is over 26,001 and a firefighter endorsement. They pull NO trailers with there
trucks, so its just like driving a BUS

 

Don't know about Cali, but here in Florida-Any single vehicle over 26k you need a class B (Fire department employees are exempt) If your trailer GVWR is over 10k and you are using it in a commercial enterprise (not for personal use) then you are required to have a Class A.

So if you have a 1 ton truck with a 3 car wedge. The trailer is rated at say 11k and you are using it for business then u must have a valid class A license, even though your combined gross is under 26K.