--- title: "Authority Trends Analysis — April 17, 2026 | AlphaLoops Data Hub" description: "Net operating authority has been negative in every month from December 2022 through at least January 2026, a streak exceeding three years." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Article", "headline": "Authority Trends Analysis — April 17, 2026", "datePublished": "2026-04-17T17:36:20.710Z", "dateModified": "2026-04-17T17:36:20.710Z", "author": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "AlphaLoops" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "AlphaLoops" }, "description": "Net operating authority has been negative in every month from December 2022 through at least January 2026, a streak exceeding three years.", "mainEntityOfPage": "https://runalphaloops.com/data/authority-trends/archive/2026-04-17" }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "WebSite", "name": "AlphaLoops", "url": "https://runalphaloops.com/" } ] --- [![](/lovable-uploads/AlphaLoops-Logo-2025_Black-Type_White-Background_3280x1024.png)](/) [Product](/product) [Solutions](/solutions) [ Insurance Commercial auto, MGAs, trucking insurance programs ](/solutions/insurance)[ Fleet Payments Fuel cards, expense cards, AP, driver pay ](/solutions/fleet-payments)[ TMS TMS sales, BD, and RevOps ](/solutions/tms)[ Broker Risk Fraud intelligence for brokers and 3PLs ](/solutions/broker-risk)[ Telematics Telematics, ELD, dashcam, and connected fleet sales ](/solutions/telematics) [All solutions →](/solutions) [Integrations](/integrations) [ Salesforce AppExchange managed package · push to Account, Lead, Contact ](/integrations/salesforce)[ HubSpot Managed app · push to Company and Contact with associations ](/integrations/hubspot)[ Microsoft Dynamics 365 Power Automate connector · push to Dataverse Account and Contact ](/integrations/dynamics)[ n8n Verified community node · AI agent workflows ](/integrations/n8n)[ MCP Server Hosted Model Context Protocol · Claude, Cursor, Windsurf ](/mcp) [All integrations →](/integrations) [Pricing](/pricing)[Research](https://research.runalphaloops.com)[What's New](/whats-new) [Log In](https://alphafreight.runalphaloops.com/login)[Book a Demo](/contact) 1. [Home](/) - [Data Hub](/data) - [Authority Trends](/data/authority-trends) - [Archive](/data/authority-trends/archive) - April 17, 2026 # Authority Trends Analysis Snapshot from April 17, 2026. This analysis reflects FMCSA data available on that date and is preserved for citation. Share [](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Falphaloop-beryl.vercel.app%2Fdata%2Fauthority-trends%2Farchive%2F2026-04-17)[](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Authority%20Trends%20Analysis%20%E2%80%94%20AlphaLoops%20FMCSA%20Data%20Hub&url=https%3A%2F%2Falphaloop-beryl.vercel.app%2Fdata%2Fauthority-trends%2Farchive%2F2026-04-17)Copy This data is free to access. If you use it for research or media, we kindly ask that you cite AlphaLoops and link back to [runalphaloops.com/data](https://runalphaloops.com/data). [All snapshots](/data/authority-trends/archive) ## Analysis · as of April 17, 2026 ### Highlights - Net operating authority has been negative in every month from December 2022 through at least January 2026, a streak exceeding three years. - Total grants fell from 9,760 in August 2021 to 2,755 in January 2026, a decline of more than 70% over roughly four and a half years. - Contract authority has posted negative net changes in every month since June 2021, with revocations consistently outpacing grants. - February 2026 recorded only 831 total revocations, the lowest monthly revocation figure in the 60-month dataset, against 4,811 grants. - Broker authority net turned negative in mid-2023 and has remained mostly negative, contrasting with its positive trend through late 2022. The most unusual feature of this dataset is not the prolonged contraction in operating authority grants -- that pattern has been visible since mid-2022 -- but the February 2026 revocation figure of 831, which is the lowest monthly total in the entire 60-month series and sits far below the surrounding months, where revocations have typically ranged from 5,000 to nearly 8,000. The March 2026 revocation count is recorded as zero. Both figures should be treated as provisional or potentially affected by reporting lags rather than as evidence of a policy shift, and users comparing recent months to earlier periods should account for this when drawing conclusions. Setting aside those two months, the broader trend is one of sustained contraction. Total grants over the trailing 12 months reached 61,448, up 4.3% from 58,942 in the prior 12-month period, but total revocations over the trailing 12 months came to 67,871, meaning the market shed more authority than it added for the second consecutive annual period. In the first quarter of 2026 (January through March), total grants were 12,899, compared to 15,410 in the most recent prior quarter tracked, a quarter-over-quarter decline of roughly 16%, though again the data-completeness caveat applies to March 2026. Authority types have diverged meaningfully. Common authority dominates the volume -- 55,816 of the 61,448 grants in the trailing 12 months, or about 91% -- while contract authority contributed only 1,700 grants over the same span. Contract authority has recorded negative net changes in virtually every month since mid-2021, and broker authority, which held positive net figures through most of 2021 and 2022, turned consistently negative from mid-2023 onward. This divergence is consistent with a freight market that contracted sharply from a 2021 peak, with smaller or newer carriers -- who disproportionately seek common authority -- facing elevated exit pressure while established contract and broker relationships also declined. Across the full 60 months covered, total grants reached approximately 368,254 against 327,073 revocations, yielding a cumulative net of roughly 41,181 authorities -- but virtually all of that net accumulation occurred in 2021 and early 2022, before the correction began. ### Key Statistics 368,254 Total operating authority grants across all authority types May 2021 through March 2026 (60-month dataset) 327,073 Total operating authority revocations across all authority types May 2021 through March 2026 (60-month dataset) 41,181 Cumulative net operating authority change (grants minus revocations) May 2021 through March 2026 (60-month dataset) 61,448 Total operating authority grants Trailing 12 months 67,871 Total operating authority revocations Trailing 12 months 4.3% Year-over-year change in total grants (trailing 12 months vs. prior 12 months) Trailing 12 months vs. prior 12 months 55,816 Common authority grants Trailing 12 months 1,700 Contract authority grants Trailing 12 months 3,932 Broker authority grants Trailing 12 months 2,755 Total operating authority grants (lowest monthly total in the dataset) January 2026 9,760 Total operating authority grants (highest monthly total in the dataset) August 2021 12,899 Total operating authority grants Q1 2026 (January through March) Cite this data AlphaLoops. (2026). Authority Trends — FMCSA Data Hub. Retrieved 2026-04-17 from https://runalphaloops.com/data/authority-trends. ![AlphaLoops](/lovable-uploads/AlphaLoops-Logo-2025_Black-Type_White-Background_3280x1024.png) Fleet intelligence for go-to-market teams in transportation. 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