Transparency

Editorial and review standards

How educational information is researched, labeled, reviewed, updated, and corrected.

Editorial lead: Leonardo Corredor. Standards reviewed: .

1. Identify the type and scope of every important claim

A page should distinguish a federal requirement, a state-dependent requirement, an employer policy, practical experience, and editorial opinion. It should not present one category as another.

2. Prefer primary sources

Regulatory and licensing explanations should be checked against current sources such as the eCFR, FMCSA, PHMSA, NHTSA, BLS, and the appropriate state licensing agency. Secondary sources may help explain a subject but should not replace the controlling source.

3. Show review status where reliance could create risk

Pages involving HOS, hazmat, inspections, roadside conduct, warning devices, licensing, labor data, prices, or product recommendations should display a review date or clearly warn readers when information may have changed. A review date means the page was checked for source alignment; it is not a guarantee that every possible exception is covered.

4. Explain assumptions and exceptions

Calculators and decision tools must state what information they use, what they exclude, and when the result is only an educational estimate. Complex exceptions must not be reduced to a confident answer when the available inputs are insufficient.

5. Separate experience from authority

Practical recommendations may be informed by more than two decades of commercial-driving and trucking/logistics experience. Experience improves examples and judgment, but it does not replace the law, an official manual, a qualified instructor, an employer's policy, or individual professional advice.

6. Handle English and Spanish carefully

Spanish explanations should preserve important English CDL and industry terms that drivers will encounter during testing, inspections, employment, and operations. Translations should explain meaning rather than merely substitute words.

7. Correct material errors

Correction reports are reviewed according to potential safety and compliance impact. Material errors should be corrected promptly, with the affected source or review date updated when appropriate. Readers can report a correction through the contact form.

8. Disclose commercial relationships

Affiliate compensation, sponsorship, free products, or other commercial relationships must be disclosed clearly near the relevant recommendation. Compensation must not determine the safety conclusion or remove reasonable alternatives.

9. Use technology under human responsibility

Technology may assist with drafting, organization, translation, calculations, or quality checks. The editorial lead remains responsible for the site's published position. Material regulatory and safety claims require verification against appropriate sources.

Education versus individualized advice

Mercury CDL Training provides general educational information. It is not legal advice, individualized safety instruction, employment placement, an official CDL manual, or a substitute for registered ELDT training when ELDT is required.