To amend title 49, United States Code, to grant the United States Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico eligibility to issue commercial driver's licenses, and for other purposes.

Key Points

• This bill would change federal law to allow the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico to issue their own commercial driver's licenses. Currently, these territories are not treated the same as states when it comes to these specific licenses for truck and bus drivers.
• The plan gives these territories five years to get their systems up to speed with federal safety rules. During this time, the government will not take away their federal highway money even if they are still working on meeting all the requirements.
• Federal safety officials will be required to work directly with local leaders in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. This help is meant to make sure their licensing programs meet the same high standards used across the rest of the country.
• This change is intended to help the local economy by making it easier for people in these territories to get jobs driving large vehicles. It also ensures that drivers from these areas are tracked and regulated under the same safety system used in the fifty states.

Impact Analysis

Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.