(U.S. Senate) – Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.) are introducing bipartisan legislation today to make it easier for veterans to use their VA benefits to access trucking apprenticeship programs.

The Senators’ Veterans Transition to Trucking Act would cut bureaucratic red tape currently making it more difficult for veterans to utilize trucking apprenticeships that operate across multiple states and allow the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to approve programs operated by interstate commercial trucking companies.

“Truckers and transportation workers fuel our economy, and we’ve got to be doing everything we can to bring more qualified truckers into the fold, including our nation’s veterans,” said Chairman Tester. “Our commonsense bill will cut bureaucratic red tape and ensure veterans looking to use their VA education benefits to access trucking apprenticeships can more easily do so.”

“Let’s help veterans any way in which we can,” said Dr. Cassidy. “Having a commercial driver’s license is a great career. Let’s make sure the veterans know about it.”

Trucking companies currently operating in more than one state must get approval from each state to allow veterans to use their VA education benefits for apprenticeship programs with their company. In some cases, these companies have opted out of offering apprenticeships for veterans due to the burdensome red tape required to get more than 20 different approvals.

The Veterans Transition to Trucking Act would allow interstate commercial carriers to get one approval for their apprenticeship programs from VA—making it easier for veterans to access trucking apprenticeship programs.

Veterans Service Organizations and stakeholders support the Senators’ legislative effort to streamline VA’s approval process for trucking companies offering apprenticeships to veterans, including the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), and the American Trucking Association (ATA).

“DAV knows that a veteran’s transition to civilian life is not complete until they can find meaningful employment. With many veterans being drawn to the trucking industry, it’s important that our nation eases the pathway for them to acquire commercial driving licenses,” said DAV National Commander Nancy Espinosa. “That’s why DAV fully supports the Veterans Transition to Trucking Act as it would allow the VA to approve apprenticeship programs operated by interstate commercial carriers, thereby providing service-disabled veterans the opportunity to obtain a CDL and overcome their employment barriers. We applaud Sen. Tester and Sen. Cassidy’s leadership in introducing this important legislation to help veterans securing meaningful employment while also addressing the national trucking shortage and strengthening our supply chains.”

“The VFW supports the Veterans Transition to Trucking Act to allow VA to approve apprenticeship programs operated by interstate commercial carriers,” said VFW Deputy Legislative Director Kristina Keenan. “Currently, these trucking companies must get their programs approved by the State Approving Agency for each state in which they operate, creating a burden that is leading some to opt out of the GI Bill program completely. Allowing one approval for each school could ensure that student veterans are able to use their earned benefits to obtain the training for high-demand jobs. The VFW thanks Senators Tester and Cassidy for introducing this legislation.”

“ATA thanks Senators Tester and Cassidy for introducing this commonsense solution that will make it easier to stand up apprenticeship programs for our nation’s veterans,” said ATA’s Senior Vice President of Legislative Affairs Henry Hanscom. “America’s trucking industry needs drivers, and making it easier for the men and women who have served our country to enter fulfilling careers in trucking is a win-win. ATA supports this legislation and looks forward to working with Congress to enact these bipartisan reforms into law.”

“MTA and LMTA are grateful to see a bipartisan legislative proposal that will make it easier for veterans to enter the trucking workforce in Montana, Louisiana, and nationwide,” said Renee Amar, Executive Director of the Louisiana Motor Truck Association (LMTA), and Duane Williams, CEO of the Montana Trucking Association (MTA). “It is vitally important that we make it easier for the servicemembers who have safeguarded our freedoms to have job training opportunities and stable careers in dynamic industries like trucking when they return home. We support this legislation and look forward to working with our federation partners to encourage its passage by Congress.”