[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 109 (Monday, June 26, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H5146-H5147]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ACTIVE DUTY VOLUNTARY ACQUISITION OF NECESSARY CREDENTIALS FOR
EMPLOYMENT ACT
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules
and pass the bill (H.R. 2258) to require that certain standards for
commercial driver's licenses applicable to former members of the armed
services or reserves also apply to current members of the armed
services or reserves, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2258
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Active Duty Voluntary
Acquisition of Necessary Credentials for Employment Act'' or
the ``ADVANCE Act''.
SEC. 2. COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSE STANDARDS FOR SERVICE
MEMBERS AND VETERANS.
Section 31305(d) of title 49, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Veteran
Operators'' and inserting ``Service Members, Reservists, and
Veterans'';
(2) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``subparagraph (A)
during'' and inserting ``subparagraph (A)--
``(i) while serving in the armed forces or reserve
components; and
``(ii) during''; and
(3) in paragraph (2)(B), by inserting ``current or'' before
``former'' each place the term appears.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Missouri (Mr. Graves) and the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia
(Ms. Norton) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri.
General Leave
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend
their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2258.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Missouri?
There was no objection.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Madam Speaker, the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act, or
FAST Act, authorized the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to
exempt veterans from certain requirements in order to obtain a
commercial driver's license if they had qualified experience while
serving in the armed services or Reserve components.
H.R. 2258 would extend this exemption to individuals who are
currently serving in either the armed services or Reserve components.
This is a bipartisan bill that will help current members of the armed
services or Reserve components find employment in the private sector.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2258, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2258, as amended,
which will allow current servicemembers who have military experience
operating commercial motor vehicles to more easily obtain a commercial
driver's license.
In 2015, Congress included a provision in the FAST Act to allow
States to waive the written CDL knowledge test for drivers with
military commercial motor vehicle driving experience, but it restricts
the waiver to former members of the military. There are a significant
number of current reservists and members of the National Guard with
military commercial motor vehicle experience who could benefit from the
waiver. This legislation allows them to more easily use the skills they
learned serving our country to earn a decent wage and feed their
families.
These servicemen and servicewomen receive from the Federal Motor
Carrier Safety Administration, or FMCSA, what they describe as thorough
and comprehensive training, including many hours of behind-the-wheel
training--something that we have long advocated for as a requirement
for civilian drivers. There is a shortage of commercial truck drivers,
and these well-trained military drivers are exactly the type of
individuals that we would want to help enter the trucking profession.
Using its existing exemption authority, FMCSA has already taken
action to make current servicemembers eligible for the knowledge test
waiver on a temporary basis. Last October, FMCSA issued an exemption
that allows States to waive the CDL knowledge test for trained military
truck drivers, whether they are current members of the military or
veterans.
FMCSA cited the fact that training these drivers receive in the
military includes ``many hours of classroom training, practical skills
training, and on-the-road training that are essential for safe
driving.'' However, FMCSA's temporary exemption expires in October
2018. This bill would make permanent the ability for current members of
the military to utilize the FAST Act waiver.
Madam Speaker, I strongly support this legislation, and I urge its
adoption.
[[Page H5147]]
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from California (Mr. Aguilar), my good friend.
Mr. AGUILAR. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Active Duty Voluntary
Acquisition of Necessary Credentials for Employment Act, or the ADVANCE
Act.
The ADVANCE Act will allow Active Duty servicemembers, reservists,
and National Guardsmen the same unique testing standards for commercial
driver's licenses granted to veterans by the latest surface
transportation bill, the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act,
the FAST Act.
The FAST Act allows veterans with qualifying experience to be exempt
from State knowledge-based tests when obtaining commercial driver's
licenses. The ADVANCE Act would extend this exemption to Active Duty
servicemembers, reservists, and National Guardsmen.
I introduced the ADVANCE Act to ensure that Active Duty
servicemembers and reservists have access to the same benefits as
veterans, helping to smooth their transition from military to civilian
life. We owe it to our brave men and women to help them find work here
at home.
This bipartisan bill is a commonsense measure that will create
opportunities for servicemembers to find work in their communities by
simplifying how they translate the driving skills they learned in the
military to American jobs across this country. According to the
Department of Transportation, the ADVANCE Act can help nearly 75,000
Active Duty, Reserves, and National Guardsmen throughout the United
States.
This legislation comes at a critical time. According to the American
Trucking Associations, there is an estimated 40,000 truck driver
shortage nationally. The American Trucking Associations has endorsed
the ADVANCE Act because it will help put servicemembers back to work
here at home and it will allow us to close a troubling skills gap in
our local communities.
The ADVANCE Act has also been endorsed by the Association of the
United States Navy and The Retired Enlisted Association. It was
unanimously passed out of the Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee, and has strong bipartisan support.
Additionally, Senators Cornyn and Warren have introduced a bipartisan
companion bill in the Senate.
I urge my colleagues to join me today and support this bill so we can
make this commonsense change to ensure that all current and former
members of the military with specialized training can more easily
access the licenses they need to get good-paying jobs as they
transition to civilian life.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I want to thank Mr. Aguilar, who is the author of this bill, for his
work in filling this hole so that members of the National Guard and
reservists, indeed, are more easily able to obtain a commercial
driver's license based on exactly the kind of training that the armed
services gives.
It is certainly true that we have had trouble in committee getting
on-the-job training as a requirement.
{time} 1730
Here, we have people who get on-the-job training, and on-the-job
training of just the kind that our country needs, because of the
shortage Mr. Aguilar spoke of in commercial drivers, a very difficult
job that necessitates long hours, often away from one's own home and
family.
Madam Speaker, I regard this bill as a twin of the very first bill
that we passed, the VA bill that allows the Veterans Administration to
offer physical examinations, when we were alerted that there were only
25 physicians there who could do that.
So this is a good pairing of bills that our country needs because of
the shortage of commercial drivers, and that we owe our veterans and
those who serve, even now, in our services. I am particularly pleased
that this is a jobs bill. It seems to me that it is clear that when we
enable more and more people to drive commercial trucks, we are
increasing the supply of jobs available in our country.
These are high-paying jobs for good reason, because they are
difficult jobs, so I think this bill and our first bill are bills that
the bipartisan House today can take special pride in.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, with that, I urge my
colleagues to join me in supporting this important piece of
legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Graves of Missouri) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2258, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. GRAVES of Missouri. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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