(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Senator Jon Tester (Democrat-Montana) and U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (Republican-Louisiana) have introduced bipartisan legislation to make it easier for Veterans to use their 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.

Chairman Tester said: “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.  Our common-sense 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.”

Added Cassidy: “Let’s help Veterans any way in which we can.  Having a commercial driver’s license is a great career.  Let’s make sure 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 the 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).

To Read This Apprenticeship And Training Labor News Story In Its Entirety, Go To: Tester, Cassidy Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Cut Red Tape on Trucking Apprentice... (senate.gov)