The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) shared their support of the BUILD America 250 Act, H.R. 8870, which deals with long-term surface transportation and reauthorization legislation authored by Representative Sam Graves. Daren Coppock, ARA President and CEO, submitted a letter of support to Committee Chairman Sam Graves, Ranking Member Rick Larsen, Subcommittee on Highways and Transit Chairman David Rouzer and Ranking Member Eleanor Holmes Norton.
Coppock said “Agricultural retailers are the critical link between manufacturers and the farmers and ranchers who feed America. The reliability of that link depends on a modern transportation system – safe roads and bridges, qualified commercial drivers, and federal rules that reflect the realities of agricultural freight. The BUILD America 250 Act addresses each of these needs in meaningful ways, and ARA is proud to support it. These provisions represent a meaningful step toward a transportation system that works with – rather than against – the agricultural supply chain.”
Part of this legislation requires the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to assess each state’s enforcement of Seasonal AG CDL programs and their effect on the industry. Reformation of the Seasonal CDL program is a priority for ARA.
In his letter of support, Coppock writes “For decades inconsistent state-by-state interpretation of which vehicles and equipment qualify as implements of husbandry have created significant compliance risk for retailers, exposing seasonal drivers to inconsistent enforcement, and undermining the regulatory certainty that the seasonal agricultural CDL program is designed to provide.”
Audio Reporting by Dale Sandlin and Elizabeth Sanders for Southeast AgNet.