What Happened?

If you are between 18 and 20 years old and want to drive a commercial truck across state lines, the federal pilot program that made that possible has closed, and Congress has not yet decided what comes next. A Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on the Safe Driver Apprenticeship Pilot Program found the program ended with far fewer participants than Congress had authorized, according to a Legis1 review of the findings. ​

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) approved 76 apprentice drivers, just 2.5 percent of the 3,000 the program allowed, and 62 motor carriers, 6.2 percent of the 1,000 authorized, based on enrollment data through June 2025. The program, created by a 2021 infrastructure law and launched by FMCSA on Jan. 14, 2022, concluded Nov. 7, 2025.

Why Does it Matter to Me?

Workers ages 55 or older made up 30 percent of the U.S. truck transportation workforce in 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Without a follow-on program, drivers under 21 generally cannot haul freight across state lines, limiting the pipeline of younger workers entering the industry.

A separate Department of Transportation report to Congress found no observed adverse safety impacts in fiscal years 2023 and 2024, though it cautioned that the small number of participants limits how broadly that finding applies.

Congress intervened once during the pilot's life, passing the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, which barred federal funds from being used to require Department of Labor registration or inward-facing cameras as conditions of participation.

Both Sides, Now

The Commercial Vehicle Training Association, Truckload Carriers Association and Next Generation in Trucking Association backed a petition by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) to extend the program's exemption for five years, calling it a workforce development measure.

Groups including the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Truck Safety Coalition, Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways, Parents Against Tired Truckers and Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety opposed the petition, citing safety concerns about young and inexperienced drivers.

A CDC/NIOSH investigation documented the death of a 19-year-old truck driver whose vehicle overturned on a rural Kentucky highway on Dec. 7, 2023, though the investigation did not establish that her age caused the crash.

What Happens Next?

The House referred the DRIVE-SAFE Act to the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit on Dec. 1, 2025, and it remains in committee. A surface transportation reauthorization bill, the BUILD America 250 Act, includes a provision to extend the pilot for former participants and cleared the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee 62-2, but has not passed the full House.

The statutory FMCSA report to Congress, due March 7, had not been published as of September, and no final FMCSA decision on the American Trucking Associations' petition to extend the program's exemption has been identified.

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