A leading advocacy organization for professional truck driver training programs has voiced its supports of the federal government's move to remove more than 500 such schools from a registry of training providers.
The Commercial Vehicle Training Association (CVTA) today thanked Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Administrator Derek Barrs for what the association called "their decisive action in the removal of 550 bad actor trucking schools as part of the most extensive CDL training enforcement initiative in federal history."
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On Wednesday, Duffy released a strongly worded statement announcing a crackdown on substandard commercial driver's license training programs. He said more than 300 investigators crossed all 50 states to conduct over 1,400 sting operations, which resulted in 448 notices of proposed removals issued to schools that failed to meet basic safety standards. Duffy's statement said 109 other training providers voluntarily removed themselves from the Training Provider Registry upon hearing investigators were on the way.
This sweeping action has strengthened the integrity of commercial driver education and reaffirmed the critical role high-quality training plays in protecting the motoring public, according to CVTA's comments today. CVTA said its members welcomed the scrutiny of these random audits and passed with flying colors.
CVTA also highlighted the close alignment between the federal crackdown and the association's multi-year effort to strengthen Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) enforcement nationwide.
"CVTA has been the tip of the spear in identifying noncompliant providers and pushing for meaningful federal oversight," said CVTA Chairman Jeff Burkhardt. "Our ELDT Task Force has worked tirelessly to clean up this industry and help usher in a new era of safer roadways and greater opportunity in trucking. We commend Secretary Duffy and Administrator Barrs for transforming these long-standing concerns into real enforcement that protects the public and supports reputable schools."
CVTA noted that these enforcement gains arrive at a critical moment for the freight economy, which has experienced significant turbulence over the past several years. Hundreds of thousands of unqualified or improperly licensed drivers have entered the marketplace, harming freight rates and contributing to instability because they are not trained for quality, long-term trucking careers, according to the CVTA.
"What do markets love? Certainty," said CVTA Executive Director Andrew Poliakoff. "While it may take some time to fully rid the marketplace of CDL mills, the result will be greater certainty around the hiring of drivers who have been trained by reputable schools. That effect may be exactly what the market is looking for. As safety around certainty goes up, opportunity will rise along with it."
In his statement Tuesday, Duffy said, "For too long, the trucking industry has operated like the Wild, Wild West, where anything goes and nobody asks any questions. American families should have confidence that our school bus and truck drivers are following every letter of the law and that starts with receiving proper training before getting behind the wheel."
American Trucking Associations Chief Advocacy & Public Affairs Officer Henry Hanscom issued this statement:
“We commend the Trump Administration for taking decisive action to strengthen the integrity of our commercial driver training system and reinforce its commitment to safer roads.
“The proposed removal or voluntary withdrawal of more than 550 CDL training providers from the national Training Provider Registry makes clear there is no place in trucking for sham schools that fail to meet federal requirements.
“Our industry depends on safe, skilled, and well-trained drivers. That begins with training providers that meet and uphold rigorous federal curriculum and qualification standards. We support strong oversight, including random audits across the states, to ensure compliance and protect the integrity of the driver pipeline. The more than 1,400 on-site investigations FMCSA conducted nationwide as part of this operation demonstrates its ongoing willingness to weed out bad actors.
“Combined with enforcing federal driver qualification standards and maintaining consistent compliance reviews, these steps are critical to strengthening the CDL system and ensuring every driver who gets behind the wheel is well prepared to operate safely.”
