HB 46-WAIVE CDL SKILL TEST FOR CERTAIN VETERANS  1:09:24 PM CHAIR P. WILSON announced that the first order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 46, "An Act relating to regulations adopted by the Department of Administration waiving the commercial motor vehicle driving skills test for certain drivers with military commercial motor vehicle experience." 1:09:46 PM REPRESENTATIVE DAN SADDLER, Alaska State Legislature, stated that Alaskans who have honed their skills in the military service to their country should have their skills recognized in the civilian world. This bill would help Alaska's veterans get jobs and Alaska's businesses to get very qualified drivers by acknowledging military drivers already have safe driving skills. More than 60,000 service members have held jobs involving truck driving and many of Alaska's industries, such as construction, oil field services, and tourism require commercial drivers' licenses. REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER said that in 2012, the federal government passed a law allowing states to waive the road test skill, so long as the military driver had recent experience and a clean driving record. Under the federal law, drivers must still pass their vision test, physical test, and meet other requirements. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has encouraged states to allow these waivers. Thus far, 34 other states have waived the skills test for military veterans and 10 are currently working on waivers. This bill would direct the state Department of Administration (DOA) to adopt regulations in accordance with the federal standards to allow the waivers in Alaska. In short, HB 46 would mean jobs for veterans and qualified drivers for Alaska's businesses. He noted letters of support in members' packets. In response to Representative Isaacson, he related the original bill is currently before the committee and no changes were made when the bill came before the House State Affairs Standing Committee. 1:12:30 PM MARK SAN SOUCI, Regional Liaison Northwest, Department of Defense State Liaison Office, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense, stated that the heavy tractor and trailer driving career in the military falls in the top ten of all occupational specialties in the military and is the second highest career choice in the United States Army with almost eight percent skilled in this career field. Additionally, this field is the second highest career choice in the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) with over five percent of Marines skilled in operating these vehicles. He referred to a U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Network Online Partnership report, which forecasts that the truck driving field is one of the brightest outlook fields with one of the faster than average job growth estimates. The report estimated that between 20 to 28 percent or 100,000 job openings would occur between 2010 and 2012. He offered the Department of Defense's support for HB 46. 1:14:26 PM LIZ GLOOSCHENKO, Business Manager, Alaska Trucking Association, stated the ATA is a statewide organization representing the interests of nearly 200 member companies. MS. GLOOSCHENKO read from a prepared statement. She related that one of the pressing problems in the industry today is to find qualified drivers for the commercial vehicles that industry uses to deliver freight. She said, "As you all know, "if you got it, a truck brought it." The ATA spends a lot of time and effort recruiting and retaining good drivers. The regulatory bar has been raised in the past few years to further increase the professionalism of drivers in the industry. She said, "When someone says he or she is just a truck driver, they miss the mark completely. Truck driving is a profession that requires a great deal of in-depth knowledge of the regulations as well as driving skills to navigate a large rig through our highway system." Alaska has some of the best drivers in the nation, and they become outstanding drivers through their driving training, experience, and self-interest since these skills can save their lives or the lives of others. MS. GLOOSCHENKO said as an industry the ATA welcomes returning veterans and appreciates this opportunity to support veterans, as well as to help the industry. She related that these men and women have had some of the best truck driving training available and will bring to the industry recent hands-on experience in driving big rigs. With proper certification as to a veteran's experience, the ATA supports waiving the skills test for the issuance of a commercial driver's license (CDL). A number of other states have similar programs for their veterans and Alaska should do no less. She said the ATA is proud to support veterans and HB 46. She urged members to support the bill and pass it from committee with "do pass" recommendations. 1:17:31 PM CHAIR P. WILSON, after first determining no one else wished to testify, closed public testimony on HB 46. 1:17:36 PM REPRESENTATIVE ISAACSON moved to report HB 46 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal note. There being no objection, HB 46 was reported from the House Transportation Standing Committee. The committee took an at-ease from 1:18 p.m. to 1:20 p.m.