President Joe Biden has signed into law a bill that will expand opportunities in the trucking industry for military veterans.
This past week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Veteran Improvement Commercial Driver License Act after it cleared the Senate in November 2023. The president signed the bill into law on Tuesday, Oct. 1.
Previously, laws prevented new trucking school locations from accepting GI Bill benefits for two years after opening, including new locations opened by schools that are already established. The Veteran Improvement Commercial Driver License Act will allow new facilities to accept GI Bill benefits if their primary institutions have already received regulatory approval.
Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., introduced S656 along with Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., in March 2023. Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., and Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., introduced the identical House version, HR2830, in April 2023.
Edwards advocated for the bill during comments on the House floor last week.
“It’s high time we take meaningful steps toward better supporting a veteran’s transition into the civilian workforce,” Edwards said. “Too many arbitrary rules are impeding a veteran’s ability to achieve the very American dream that they are fighting for others to pursue, but the Veteran Improvement CDL Act helps to eliminate one of those barriers.”
During an interview with Land Line Now in May 2023, Fischer said that her bill was common sense.
“We have a number of veterans who want to become truckers, want to get their CDLs and use their GI benefits in order to do it,” Fischer said. “Right now, if they go to a CDL school and that school would open another campus … they are not able to use their GI benefits to go to the new facility that’s been opened. That is another thing that makes absolutely no sense. You have the same business that has set up that facility that has already been accredited from their first facility. … So as long as these businesses are accredited, they’re licensed and they’re able to provide the training needed, then they should be able to expand their business and offer more convenience to veterans who want to be able to get their CDLs.”
In addition to the veteran CDL bill, Biden also signed S794 into law on Tuesday, Oct. 1. The Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism Pilot Program Act of 2023 requires the Department of Homeland Security to carry out a pilot program to assess whether allowing approved third-party logistics providers to participate in the Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism would enhance port security or otherwise help meet the goals of the program. LL
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