WASHINGTON — The American Trucking Associations (ATA) is applauding the House passage of the Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act; the bill now heads to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.
“For far too long, the truck drivers who keep our country running have been subjected to an outdated, inefficient credentialing system that does not respect their time and money,” said Chris Spear, ATA President. “That begins to change today. By taking the final step needed to eliminate unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, Congress will provide essential supply chain workers with overdue relief from redundant background checks and fees. The Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act is a bipartisan victory for common sense. We commend Members of Congress, especially Senator Roger Wicker and Congressman Garret Graves, who stood up for truckers, making it easier and less costly for hardworking Americans to obtain the credentials they need to do their jobs.”
The Senate passed the bill unanimously in November.
In a press release, the ATA thanked Representatives Garret Graves (R-Louisiana), Adam Smith (D-Washington), Mark Green (R-Tennessee), Michael Guest (R-Mississippi), Salud Carbajal (D-California) and Dina Titus (D-Nevada) for authoring the bill and working tirelessly to get it across the finish line. ATA also thanked House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) for his instrumental role in scheduling a vote before the end of the congressional session. This was the final step in the legislative process since the bill, which was introduced in the Senate by Senators Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), Jon Tester (D-Montana), Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska), and Angus King (I-Maine), passed the upper chamber unanimously last month.
ATA has been at the forefront of the push to pass this bipartisan legislation to eliminate redundant fees and background checks for essential supply chain workers, according to the release. Beginning last year, ATA assembled a group of over 150 organizations representing trucking, rail, energy, organized labor, agriculture, third-party logistics providers and other key supply chain stakeholders in support of the Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act.
“The bill has been a mainstay in ATA’s Call on Washington program this year, which has facilitated 700 meetings between ATA’s member companies and lawmakers on Capitol Hill since the beginning of this Congress,” the release said. “ATA also leveraged its 50-state federation to put pressure on key Members of Congress. As part of this comprehensive, ongoing advocacy effort, ATA President and CEO Chris Spear headed to Capitol Hill to meet one-on-one with the bill’s original sponsors and committee leaders to shore up support.”
According to the release, the Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act cuts through red tape to allow workers to apply existing valid background checks to multiple TSA-managed credentialing programs, such as the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) and Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HME) programs. By eliminating duplicative screenings and harmonizing these programs, the bill would codify formal recommendations by the Government Accountability Office dating back to 2007. These recommendations were reaffirmed in 2020 in a comprehensive security assessment conducted by the Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center. The bill does not make any modifications to the backend security threat assessment conducted on individual applicants, ensuring that they undergo the same level of review as they do under current law.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
