During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government temporarily relaxed some of the rules for getting a commercial driver's license (CDL) to keep the trucking industry moving. This bill makes those temporary pandemic waivers permanent by giving them official legal backing. Specifically, it allows people who are already certified to give CDL tests to administer the knowledge portion of the test (the written exam) if they've completed just one training unit, rather than requiring the full training course. It also lets states test CDL applicants from anywhere in the country, regardless of where they live or where they took their driver training. In practical terms, this means the process for becoming a commercial truck driver should be faster and more flexible, since examiners don't need as much training and states can test drivers from out of state. This could help address truck driver shortages by making it easier for people to get their CDL, though it does relax some of the safety training requirements that were originally in place.

LICENSE Act of 2023

LaHood, Darin

Licensing Individual Commercial Exam-takers Now Safely and Efficiently Act of 2023 or the LICENSE Act of 2023 This bill provides statutory authority for waivers of training, testing, and other requirements for commercial driver's licenses (CDLs) that were issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.Specifically, this bill allows a state or third-party examiner who has maintained a valid CDL test examiner certification and has previously completed a CDL skills test examiner training course to administer the CDL knowledge test, so long as they have completed one unit of the CDL knowledge test training course.The bill also allows a state to administer a driving skills test to any CDL applicant regardless of the applicant's state of domicile or where the applicant received driver training.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;