New Bill to Allow Truck Drivers Under 21 to Pick Up Loads From Ports
Legislation introduced this week in the House would provide more leniency for 18 to 20 year old drivers to operate in marine terminals and ports.
Florida Rep. Brian Mast introduced the Ceasing Age-Based (CAB) Trucking Restrictions Act on January 10th, 2023. Mast introduced similar legislation in 2021.
Focus on Supply Chain
The bills focus is to “cut unnecessary red tape” and “get the supply chain moving again” by amending current restrictions that forbid those under 21 from picking up containers from a port because doing so is considered operating in interstate commerce.
Rep. Brian Mast Comments
“While many states – including Florida – allow truckers between the ages of 18 to 20 to transport goods within the state lines, any transportation across the state boundaries requires that the trucker is at least 21 years old. Due to an oversight in the current law, picking up goods from a port is interpreted as interstate transportation, even if it is within the state, and therefore all drivers must be over 21 to pick up cargo coming off of ships. That means a 20-year-old with a commercial driver’s license could not pick up a shipment at the Port of Palm Beach and deliver it to a destination in Stuart, but that same driver could transport cargo from Tallahassee all the way to Miami,” Mast explained in a blog post.
“The supply chain is broken, and Americans are paying the price. For years, families have struggled to get even the most basic necessities, like baby formula. Congress should be working to find common sense solutions that reduce regulations and repair what President Biden and Congressional Democrats broke. The CAB Act does just that,” Mast continued.
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