President Trump announced that military veterans with heavy-truck driving experience will be automatically eligible for a commercial driver’s license under a new federal initiative, expanding an existing waiver program that already lets veterans skip parts of the licensing process.
“Under our brand new Freedom Haulers initiative, any American who has driven a heavy truck for our military will automatically be eligible for a commercial driver’s license, and it’s good-paying jobs too,” Trump said at the July 30 White House announcement. “Any veteran with heavy vehicle experience from the military will now be eligible to skip redundant road tests to obtain a commercial driver’s license.”
The policy builds on an existing federal regulation rather than creating an entirely new legal framework. Under 49 CFR 383.77, a rule the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration finalized in May 2011, states have had the authority to waive the skills-test portion of the CDL exam for service members and recently separated veterans with at least two years of safe driving experience operating similar vehicles in the military. Trump’s Freedom Haulers announcement expands the window during which veterans can apply for that waiver from one year after separation to two years, and in participating states, extends the waiver to cover the written knowledge test as well, a broader version known as the Even Exchange program.
Trump said the program would also serve veterans who did not drive trucks during their military service. “For the veterans where you have a situation where you don’t have truck drivers in the military, they’re gonna be given a very quick pass,” Trump said. “They’re gonna learn, and they’re gonna learn very quickly, and they’ll be licensed in a matter of a few weeks. They’re gonna take about three or four weeks of training.”
The program is led by the Department of Transportation with support from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of War and the Department of Labor, according to the Transportation Department’s official announcement. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the underlying skills-transfer concept has long been recognized by federal regulators, given how closely military truck operations mirror civilian commercial driving requirements. “These are great-paying jobs,” Duffy said, noting salaries in the program typically range from $80,000 to more than $100,000 annually.
Trump said 34 states have joined the initiative as of the announcement, naming Indiana, Wyoming, Louisiana, Arkansas, Alabama, Florida and Maryland, and called for the remaining states to sign on. Florida already has its own state-level implementing regulation for the underlying federal waiver, requiring veterans to apply within 90 days of separation and complete the process within 120 days, according to the state’s administrative code.
Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said his department would support the expanded eligibility window by broadening access to CDL training through the GI Bill and the department’s Veterans Readiness and Education program, noting more than 2,800 veterans are currently enrolled in related training nationwide.
Trump connected the policy to the administration’s separate enforcement crackdown on commercial drivers, saying the government had already removed more than 24,000 non-English-speaking drivers from behind the wheel and forced states to cancel more than 28,000 commercial licenses the administration said had been unlawfully issued to noncitizens. Those actions relate to a separate legal requirement, under 49 CFR 391.11, that interstate commercial drivers be able to read and speak English sufficiently to converse with the public and understand highway signs.
Trump cited safety data to support the broader push toward veteran drivers, saying veterans account for 42 percent fewer accidents than non-veteran drivers despite driving roughly double the annual mileage.
Werner Enterprises President Nathan Meisgeier said his company would hire 1,400 veteran drivers over the next year in connection with the initiative.
Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling said the Department of Labor would support the program through its Employment Navigator initiative, which connects transitioning service members with trucking employers directly at military bases nationwide as they prepare to separate from active duty.
Neither the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration nor individual state licensing agencies had issued updated implementing guidance reflecting the expanded window as of the announcement.