Question:
Is there a url that I can go to for all those places - the FHWA and such? It will be a long time before I do any of this, but I want to study it all during all that long time. What else should an aspiring O/O and fleet owner study? Plenty I'm sure, but a few major ones to get me started.

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ok, I found this - - but I can't find anything about getting my authority.

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Try this:
Also, pick up a copy of the FMCSR Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations handbook and read the thing. In addition, you should start checking out different drug testing programs so that you will have one in place when it is time to go. As a motor carrier you will have to have a plan in place even if you are the only driver, thus, you must join a drug testing consortium because it would otherwise be impossible to random test yourself. Afterall, what would you do? Wake up one day and say to yourself, "Gee I've been good for 30 days, I should be able to pass the test how about I go in?"... I'm sure you get the point.
Checking into insurance rates will also be of assistance. Always rememeber to tell the agent that you will need a BMC-91 or 91X filing. Not all insurance companies write over-thr-road carers so you must make it clear that you will need an MSC-90 endorsement on your policy. I also suggest you ask about how the agent gets certificate done, do they do them in-house? What is their turn-around time? In our office at Dixon Insurance, our turn-around time average on certs is 2minutes. That is about as good as it gets!
You may want to check into a licensing burough to take care of your IRP/IFTA/SSRS registrations as well as the fuel-tax reporting. If you want to start with a quote from our office just talk to Kris @ 800-726-7930.
Start with those things. You will learn from the FMCSR that you have to maintain your paper records in accordance with their rules. You may prefer to purchase appropriate files from a re-seller such as Label Master, JJ Keller, or your state Motor Carrier Association. You should consider joining your state association, they will forward important legislative information to you plus provide a wonderful source of information and business contacts. You can generally get discounts on varius need such as Phone service, UPS, medical insurance by joining the association. Take the time to check out your state's association and learn about what they have to offer. They may even have a web-site!
Good Luck, and stop in any time! Mel

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Tanx Mel,
You know this stuuf SOOOOO good that I'm beginning to think you're a fed spy, hehehe. Just kidding! !*big TANX again*!
As long as I'm here, and you're so smart, can you tell me anything about becoming a broker - are they licensed - how do I start a brokerage - sites - anything???
Sorry for the bother. ^_^

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I appreciate the complement, but please understand, I make it my business to understand this 'stuff'.
I am a Licensed ICC/FHWA/STB Practitioner, that means I am licensed to practice before the Surface Transportation Board and perform certain tasks as a legal representative for FHWA matters. It used to mean something, but now it really is just an old worn out title that doesn't seem to get much respect.
Anyway, I do this sort of thing for a living. My father started an insurance agency(Dixon Insurance) some 48 years ago. Now, my brother and I run the joint with our retired father peering over our shoulders making sure we do the right thing. Fifteen employees count on us for a living. Eleven years ago, I started a second business to augment the services we were already performing for our car clients. (All we write is car insurance.)
This company, Interstate car Licensing (ITL), started out as a registration and fuel-tax business growing into a full-fledged one-stop shopping unit for the trucing industy. Two years into it, I took a limited Bar exam covering transporation law only; pipeline, water, rail & motor carrier. I passed that bar exam and became a licensed practitioner. I then started obtaining operating rights, broker rights. I was also accepted by the ND PSC to practice before their board for transportation matters. Soon, I was representing companies in MN, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Ontario, and Alberta. ITL has grown up and I have a very capable manager named Kris and another gal just coming up through the ropes.
I am fortunate in that I manage both companies, sell Insurance, and take care of the legal 'stuff', this keeps me very in-touch with the transportation kingdom.
So, you see, it is not by accident that I have this information, but never be fooled. No one person knows it all and there is always much more to learn!! I constantly try and read new legislation, keep up on the fines and charges state DOT offices are inforcing, and continue to attend national meetings where much of this goomba is thrown around for discussion.
If you keep searching and are diligent in your efforts, you too will carry an encyclopedia of transportation information in your head, and guess what? It will make your job a whole lot easier. So, I am willing to share the little I know with you as long as you ask.
You have to be licensed to Broker FHWA Regulated loads. Ag goods, produce and livestock(not breeder or show), are exemot and you can Broker those loads without a license all day long. It is recommended that you check with your local state agencies to see if they have any state regulations regarding these matters.
The FHWA license is applied for with the same OP-1 form used for operating rights, and filed with the FHWA. The filing fee is $300, you need Process Agents and will have to either file a Broker Bond form BMC-84 in the amount of $10,000 or file a Trust Fund form BMC-85, also in the amount of $10,000. To do either of the above, BMC-84 or 85, you generally need a bank to give you a guaranteed Letter of Credit in that same amount. In other words, you need $10,000 sitting somewhere, or the collateral to back it up.
Before applying for the Brokerage license you will want to talk to your insurance agent about what preferences your insurance COMPANY may have about being both a motor carrier and a broker. Usually they will want the two businesses to be separate entities so that the insurance on the caring company cannot be brought into a loss occuring on the Brokerage side. At the very least, they should have separate MC numbers.
Be sure to discuss these things with your advisors. And, if you end up doing a lot of brokering, you should consider purchasing 'Contingent Cargo' and 'Contingent Liability' policies for the brokerage in the event that the motor carrier you just loaded lied and really isn't insured. Just about anyone can make up a phony insurance certificate so watch out!
Can't tell you how to make money as a broker, can't tell you how to make money as a carer either. I do know that both are hard work and that nothing comes easy, but you already know that...
I don't know of any web-sites, other than the one you are at to get help in this area. Most brokers don't have a lot of time, or desire, to help someone just starting out. My advise would be to go out and get a job in that side of the industry. You may find that you don't even like it! Anyway, that is the best way to go to school, on someone else's time clock.
Just a thought.
See ya ..... Mel

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Mel, your "worn out title" gets a lot of respect from me! Your vast knowledge on a VERY difficult subject gets even more respect!
From the responses to my broker questions in other forums, I'm not so sure I want to go into this now, but if I do, what are your fees? What would be my total expenses?
I'm not a broker, but in the O/O forum, they hate me for just asking. I couldn't take it if I worked my fanny off to get good paying loads for drivers and they hated me for my efforts. My plan was to be a broker for awhile, then buy a car and have a whole system in place, but I don't know...
Working and learning "on someone else's time clock" is, of course, excellent advice. A week ago, I e-mailed Landstar an application to be one of their brokers. From the numbers I saw on their site, they pay a lowly 3.5% commission. What percent do you think other brokers earn/take?
Again, huge TANX, and may your insurance always cover you.