NEW LICENSES
FOR
COMMERCIAL TRUCK DRIVERS
Group 7
Govt. 2301.03
Holly Wright
Debra Greger
Paula Flores
Stage 5
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In order to reduce fatal accidents involving commercial trucks and to
improve the overall safety of our streets and highways, a new standard driving
course and drivers license renewal requirement for commercial truck drivers is
being proposed.
This proposal is being made to improve the quality of life for
American citizens and their families. Safer streets and highways will contribute to
an overall greater sense of security and peace of mind for our nation as a whole.
This proposal requires commercial truck drivers to complete a standard driving
course before receiving a license. This course would involve the driver passing a
written test and completing twenty (20) hours of driving with a federally certified
instructor. This proposal would also require a commercial truck driver to pass a
driving test and written test every eight years as a condition for renewal.
Some political allies for this proposal are auto insurance companies,
Congressman Chet Edwards, the Department of Public Safety, support groups and
the media. Some of the opponents to this proposal may be the commercial truck
drivers and large trucking companies.
We feel auto insurance companies will support this proposal because it will
help to reduce the number of accidents on streets and highways and thereby reduce
their claim expense. Congressman Edwards has also endorsed our proposal and has
expressed his concern for the safety and welfare of the American people traveling
the nation's roadways. The Department of Public Safety is also very concerned
about safety and has consistently made efforts to reduce the number of fatalities
during the holiday's peak driving times. One of the main topics covered on daily
newscasts involves the reports of traffic accidents. This topic is one of the most
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frequently reported events in almost every area of our nation. We feel that the
news media would be interested in covering a proposal that concerns a topic, which
the public is intensely concerned with. There are also may support groups for
people who have lost family or close friends in tragic accidents. These groups
should be very sympathetic to this proposal.
Commercial truck drivers may be opposed to this proposal because of the
increased testing, education and time required. Commercial trucking companies
may be opposed to the increased cost involved with the proposal as well as
additional regulation this may impose on them.
Since this proposal is for a national standard requirement for commercial
truck drivers licenses, the part of the political system relevant to our objective will
be the national government. Our first step will be to contact Congressman Edwards
to sponsor and introduce our bill. We will enlist the assistance of the major
insurance companies' lobbyist groups in Washington D.C. and coordinate these
efforts with a nationwide campaign in local areas to reinforce support of the bill
with the State Senators and House of Representatives.
Some of the resources available for this proposal are publicity by the
newspaper and television media, a web site on the internet, lobbyists and funds
appropriated by the insurance companies, statistics regarding the number of fatal
accidents involving commercial trucks each year across the nation as well as private
donations and volunteers. Coverage by the newspaper and television media can be
obtained by requesting that members of Congress address this issue in their public
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statements, as well as calling the media and informing them of our proposal and
requesting that they include this topic in their interviews with Congressmen.
The language we have chosen to describe our proposal will stress the positive
outcome the proposal would achieve: safer streets and highways and a decrease in
fatal accidents. This proposal would read: " In order to reduce fatal accidents
involving commercial trucks and to improve the overall safety of our streets and
highways, a new standard driving course and renewal requirement is being
proposed.
The basic rules of the legislative process are to have a member of Congress
(Mr. Edwards) sponsor and introduce the bill to the House of Representatives. In
the House it will be assigned a bill number and then be forwarded by the House
Clerk to the proper committee of jurisdiction. This committee would probably be
the Transportation Committee. They would in turn forward the bill to their
subcommittee where hearings would be held and witnesses would be invited to
testify. After these hearings, the subcommittee would vote on the bill, and if a
majority were in favor of the bill, it would be sent back to the full committee where
again there would be hearings and a vote by the full Transportation Committee. If
the bill were not approved, it would go back to the subcommittee for revisions. If a
majority approves the bill, it would then go to the House of Representatives for
their vote. If the House approves the bill by a majority vote, the bill then goes to the
Senate and goes through the same process as it did in the House. After going to the
Senate Transportation Committee, subcommittee and then Senate, a bill which is
approved by a majority would then go to the President for signing the bill into law,
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however; if there are any changes made in the bill between the bill that the House
passed and the one the Senate approves, it must then go to a Conference Committee
to debate on the differences and reach a compromise. This compromise is called a
Conference Report and must be approved by the House and Senate before it can be
sent to the President. The President may then sign the bill into law or veto the bill.
If this process is not completed within the two-year term of the House of
Representatives, the bill dies and must be reintroduced when the next session of
Congress convenes.
The first step we plan to take is to write a personal letter to Congressman Chet
Edwards stating our organization’s concerns and request that he helps us in
introducing a bill to Congress. Our letter will be brief but informative and explain
the great concern many people have about the number of deaths involving
commercial trucks. We will also request a meeting with Mr. Edwards and ask him
to invite other members of his staff who may be interested in our cause and be able
to assist us. Winning support and gaining commitments at the state and local level
will be the most effective and successful way of having a bill approved by Congress.
While our proposal is being drafted we plan to organize a coalition of several other
groups which share our concerns such as the Department of Public Safety, auto
insurance companies, individuals who have lost family members or loved ones in
fatal accidents involving trucks and individuals who share our concerns. This new
organization will be called N.A.S.H. (National Association for Safer Highways.)
This organization will be helpful in gaining recognition and popular support.
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Our new organization, N.A.S.H. will create pamphlets explaining our goals
and informing the public about the importance of new requirements for commercial
trucks. On a quarterly basis, we will publish a newsletter containing the latest
developments on our progress in moving our bill through Congress. We will also
recognize some of our strongest supporters by highlighting them in each issue. The
pamphlets and newsletter will contain information on how interested parties may
contribute to our organization.
In order to create an emotional impact, the local and national media will be
invited to attend N.A.S.H. meetings and interview leaders to discuss concerns and
efforts to improve the safety of our roadways. To effectively concentrate our
efforts, a telephone survey will be used to identify parts of the country where there
is a lack of support of this proposal. An effort will not be made to dissuade our
opponents but an effort will be made to win approval from those who may be
undecided or uninformed. Staff members from the various local N.A.S.H.
organizations will be used for this survey and they will also be available to answer
questions we receive on our web site as well as by mail.
An outline for our plan of action will be to:
1) Contact Congressman Edwards to sponsor and introduce the bill to Congress
2) Establish N.A.S.H.- National Association for Safer Highways
3) Initiate awareness through mass media coverage
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4) Achieve national support after establishing backing on the state and local level
5) Conduct a national survey to identify supporters and areas of weak support
6) Lobby Congress before each vote on the bill
Our organization hopes to achieve a safer environment for people traveling on
our streets and highways. By enacting legislation to insure that commercial
truck drivers are well trained to perform their duties safely, we feel there will be
a substantial decline in fatal accidents involving commercial trucks.
The timetable for implementing our proposal will begin with the
initial contact with Congressman Chet Edwards in the Spring of 1998. After
receiving Mr. Edward’s advice and guidance, we plan to have a bill drafted and
introduced to the House by December of 1998. By the Spring of 1999, committee
meetings should be complete and a vote held by the House in April. In May 1999
the bill would go to the Senate were it would repeat the same process it underwent
in the House. It would first go to the Transportation Committee and then be
assigned to a subcommittee. This subcommittee would hold hearings and listen to
testimony for and against the bill. The subcommittee would then vote on the
proposed bill. If approved by a majority, it would then go back to the
Transportation Committee for hearings and a vote. This process could easily take
until September of 1999. If a Conference Committee is needed to work out any
differences between the bill the House approved and the one the Senate approves,
this process would most likely last until December of 1999.
Some of the potential circumstance that may emerge to adversely affect our
proposal might be that Congressman Edwards would not support our idea. It is
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also possible that he might not be reelected this November.
Assuming that he is
reelected, we plan to take his advice on making changes which would make our
proposal more appealing to the US Congress. Another possible adverse
circumstance, which might arise, could be opposition from truck drivers in the form
of a strong lobby against the bill. In this situation we would meet with the leaders to
negotiate an agreement which would satisfy both opponents.
We may also face
adversity when this proposal is put up for a vote. It is quite possible that each state
will argue that regulating traffic on their streets should be under their jurisdiction.
In this case we would stress the fact that this is an issue affecting all states because
commercial trucks cross the entire nation. A uniform law for all states is needed to
insure that all drivers will receive the same level of instruction and testing. A
national law is also needed to prevent truck drivers from going to states with the
least stringent requirements to obtain their licenses.
A possible scenario for the events involved in this proposal might be an initial
phone call to Congressman Chet Edward’s office in the Spring of 1998. If Mr.
Edwards is not supportive of our proposal we plan to ask his advice on how to
proceed in achieving our goal. After making any modifications Mr. Edwards may
suggest, we will proceed to have a bill drafted and introduced to the House by
December 1998.
During this time a strong lobby against the bill might occur.
Negotiations would be held to satisfy opponents on both sides of the issue.
By
April 1999, a vote in the House may defeat our efforts entirely. In this case we will
rally for more support and make adjustments to appeal to our opponents. After
making changes to the bill, it could be reintroduced in June of 1999 and begin the
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process again. After hearings and a vote by the subcommittee, the Transportation
Committee and then the House, the bill could go to the Senate by November 1999.
The process in the Senate would take until March of 2000 and if approved could go
to the President for signing or veto by June 2000.
Some of the changes made to this proposal as it was being developed included
changing one of the supporting allies from the State Troopers Association to the
Department of Public Safety. This change was made as we realized the correct
name of the organization we were referring to. The focus of the proposal was also
corrected from the state government to the national government because it
concerned an issue involving a national law instead of a state or local law. The plan
of action was also revised to use a telephone survey to identify areas of the country
where support was needed. A voter opinion poll and voter assistance was omitted.
The basic rules of the legislative process were included in the final report of this
project as they were unclear in stage two. This caused changes in the steps needed
to send a bill through Congress and the timetable developed in stage four. Also, the
truckers’ strike was changed to a strong lobby by the truckers against the bill.
Some of the lessons learned about American politics included understanding
the policy making process and the differences between proposals at the state and
national levels.
It was enlightening to learn what an individual could do when
they had a concern and wanted a change in government. It was reassuring to find
that Congressman Edward’s office was prompt and helpful in our request for
information. After our initial call to his office, one of his senior legislative
assistants, Tim Bromelkamp, in Washington DC, returned our call in just a few
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hours with the information we requested. After completing this class project we
now have a better understanding of what is going on in Washington. When Chet
Edwards is on television, as he was just a few days ago, talking about a bill
proposed in Congress and says that “The House has approved a particular bill and
I hope the Senate will act on it very soon,” we can comprehend what he is saying.
Another lesson learned while working on this project was that there are a great
deal of resources needed to successfully pass a bill in Congress. Unfortunately, the
odds seem to be quite unfavorable because of the need to have so many different
legislative bodies, committees and subcommittees agree that the bill is needed.
However, this may work in a positive way to deter special interest groups from
passing legislation that would be beneficial to only a small segment of the
population.
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