The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is telling lawmakers that the fastest way to make roads safer isn’t to widen the pipeline of new drivers — it’s to raise the bar for who gets behind the wheel. In a push on Capitol Hill this week, the group urged Congress to clamp down on driver licensing shortcuts and policy waivers it says invite high turnover and erode safety, rather than solve any real labor problem.
In a letter circulated to transportation leaders on October 20 and highlighted on Tuesday, OOIDA pressed Congress to back the Non‑Domiciled CDL Integrity Act and reject proposals to expand teen interstate driving. The association argues that the industry remains in overcapacity after a prolonged freight slump, and that policies marketed as “driver shortage” fixes too often become an on‑ramp for poorly prepared, low‑paid entrants — a combination that drives churn and safety risks.
That message lands amid a separate federal crackdown on non‑domiciled CDLs, which has triggered a wave of public comments in recent days alleging civil rights concerns and due‑process problems. Notably, challengers point to FMCSA’s own interim rule language acknowledging there isn’t robust evidence that a driver’s nation of domicile, by itself, correlates with crash risk — a nuance that will shape how far Congress and regulators can go without stronger data.
Why this matters for carriers and brokers: if lawmakers follow OOIDA’s lead, the next surface transportation package could tilt away from volume‑driven labor policies and toward tighter licensing, training and credential enforcement. In practice, that would mean more rigorous vetting and compliance checks for fleets, fewer “quick‑entry” pathways for new hires, and a greater premium on documented training quality. For small operators who compete with thin margins, the association’s bet is that curbing churn — rather than chasing headcount — stabilizes rates and improves safety performance over time.
The political friction is real. Safety advocates and many carriers support tougher credential standards and English‑proficiency enforcement; civil liberties groups and some driver organizations are warning against broad purges or subjective roadside language checks. How Congress threads that needle will determine whether the next highway bill tightens accountability without indiscriminately sidelining experienced drivers. For now, OOIDA’s play is clear: make safety and training the gatekeepers, and stop mistaking an influx of cheaper labor for a safety strategy.
Sources: FreightWaves, CDLLife, Overdrive
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