The executive director of the Commercial Vehicle Training Association (CVTA) said he is trying to form a coalition to fight changes in federal laws and regulations that will make it harder for individuals to qualify for financial aid to pay for truck driver training.

Mike O’Connell said new restrictions on student loans and grants are making it more difficult for privately run training schools to attract enough students to meet the growing demand for entry-level drivers by fleet operators.

“We have formed a new corporation – National Transportation Jobs Partnership, Inc. – and we’re asking that motor carriers, schools and industry suppliers come together to more effectively lobby Congress and the Department of Education to help us put more people to work,” O’Connell said.

In a related development, members of a school committee of the Truckload Carriers Association voted last week at the TCA annual conference in Kissimmee, Fla., to create a task force to look into alternative sources of funding for driver training.

Robert McClanahan, executive director of the National Association of Publicly Funded Truck Driving Schools and co-chairman of the TCA school committee, said the U.S. Department of Education has indicated to some school officials that it may raise a minimum program requirement to 600 hours to qualify for student loans or grants.

“A lot of our programs are 300 hours,” McClanahan said.

CVTA’s O’Connell said a recent spending bill passed by Congress also changed the ability of students who do not have a high school diploma or General Educational Development diploma or certificate to access federal funding for training.

Federal job training funds are funneled through more than 700 local workforce development boards and agencies under the Workforce Investment Act.

That’s a problem in many places, O’Connell said, because the local boards “are run like fiefdoms.”

One Texas resident was denied a grant for his training because he worked for a carrier headquartered in another state, O’Connell said.

Lou Spoonhour, owner of Driveco CDL Learning Center in Gary, Ind., said he used to get enough money from Workforce Investment Act programs to cover training expenses for up to half of the students at his school. In May last year, however, that money dried up. “We were told that there was so much competition and less funding,” he said.

Although funding has recently resumed, Spoonhour said it no longer covers the full cost of training.

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All Accredited Schools must Sign Department of Defense Memorandum of Understanding to Participate in Tuition Assistance Programs

CVTA was told that all schools that participate in veterans benefits and military tuition assistance programs must sign (on-line) a Memorandum of Understanding in order to continue their participation. The Association held two webinars under the direction of Lou Spoonhour, in which many members participated, to explain the new requirement.

Following the webinars, there was a great deal of confusion as to which schools needed to sign the Memorandum in order to continue participation. As a result, Lou, Mike and Cindy had a conference call with a senior person at the National Guard that is responsible for educational benefit programs.

As it turned out, the original information was incorrect. While tuition assistance programs are administered by the Department of Defense, programs involving the Montgomery GI Bill and Post 9/11 GI Bill are administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Therefore, the only schools that need to sign the MoU are schools that participate in federal tuition assistance programs (which means only schools that hold accreditation).

CVTA will set up another webinar to explain the process and walk those schools through the sign up procedure. If your school would like to participate, please contact Cindy Atwood. When we have determined the level of participation, we will set a date and time for the call.

WE ARE LOOKING FOR A FEW GOOD MEMBERS

CVTA will be holding elections at the 2012 Spring Conference. This is a wonderful opportunity to share your alents with the industry. We strive to be considerate of your time and appreciate any and all efforts.  If you feel you would like to join the leadership of your organization please take a moment to review:

• The Notice of Election
• Process for the Elections
• Board Applicant Statement

The following seats are up for election

• Three Member Schools Seats, (Will Bowker, Jamie Sather, Chuck Wirth)
  (Current Board Members may run for re-election)
  
  
• Two Associate Member Seats (Vinnie Picciarelli)
  (Current Board Members may run for re-election)
  
  
• Two Motor Carrier Member Seats (John Frey)
  (Current Board Members may run for re-election)

The due date for the Board Applicant Statements is January 16, 2012. We know that seems a long time away and with the Holiday Season upon please take a moment to consider joining the few, the proud the CVTA Board of Directors!  

If you have any questions please call Cindy at the office 703-6423-9444 or email Cindy.

On Friday, October 28, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released the following statement regarding the publication of the Hours of Service regulations: “The petitioners have agreed to extend the October 28, 2011, deadline for publication of a final Hours of Service rule. FMCSA will continue to work toward publishing a final rule as quickly as possible. The parties to the settlement agreement will file their next status report with the Court on November 28, 2011.”

In a statement American Trucking Associations said it hopes the agency will “use the extra time to consider the overwhelming input it has received from thousands of drivers and law enforcement officers that the current rule is working. There’s no need to break something that’s not broken.”

For more information on the proposed hours-of-service change, visit SafeDriverHours.com.

American Trucking Associations Announces:

National Truck Driver Appreciation Week is September 11 - 17. During this week, America takes the time to honor all professional truck drivers for their hard work and commitment in tackling one of our economy’s most demanding and important jobs.

Join us in celebrating the men and women across the country who work hard every day to deliver Life's Essentials.

NTDAW MATERIALS:

For updated Industry Fact & Safety Fact Sheets, click here and download from the right hand column.

If you would like to receive the 2011 NTDAW logo or sample press releases and more, please let us know! This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 703-838-7935.

NTDAW VIDEO CONTEST:

The American Trucking Associations is holding its Third Annual Video Contest to celebrate. For more information on the contest, click here.

To view the National Truck Driver Appreciation Week 2011 Video Contest Flyer with the full list of rules, click here.

DRIVER APPRECIATION GIFTS:

National Truck Driver Appreciation Week is the perfect time to show your drivers how much you appreciate their hard work, commitment and safe driving. Driver gifts are affordable, available right now and can be customized with your company logo.

Click here for 2011 NTDAW Merchandise!