Today, the House of Representatives passed Rep. Pete Aguilar’s amendment to the transportation bill to put veterans back to work. The amendment assists veterans by making it easier for those who drove specialized vehicles in the military to transition these skills to civilian jobs driving commercial vehicles. Rep. Aguilar’s legislation will help veterans obtain commercial driver’s licenses, as recommended in a report commissioned by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration two years ago. The report, which can be read here, was completed at the direction of the last surface transportation bill. Rep. Aguilar’s legislation directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Department Of Defense (DOD) to work together to implement the report’s recommendations to help veterans more easily translate their military skills into commercial driver’s licenses.

“We need to do better by our men and women in uniform who risked and sacrificed so much to keep us safe and free. As we focus on growing our economy, we need to keep our veterans in mind as we seek to expand job opportunities. Many veterans who drove specialized vehicles in the military struggle to put these skills to work when they return home because of unnecessary and burdensome regulations. My amendment makes it easier for veterans to put those skills into practice,” said Aguilar.

Rep. Aguilar’s bipartisan amendment was unanimously adopted and added to the surface transportation bill, which reauthorizes funding for projects on roads, rails and bridges in San Bernardino County and throughout the nation for six years. The House will continue to debate amendments to the bill, H.R. 22, and final passage of the bill is expected tomorrow.  After the House passes the bill, it will move to the Senate for consideration. Rep. Aguilar’s full remarks can be viewed here.