Fifteen GOP governors are calling on the Biden administration to suspend regulations on the trucking industry in hopes of moving goods in time for the holiday season. 


What You Need To Know

  • 15 Republican governors are urging the Biden administration to reduce interstate trucking regulations

  • The governors say regulations are hampering movement of goods before the holidays

  • Some governors are taking actions at the state level in hopes of opening up the movement of goods

  • The White House says that the recent $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill will have a long-term impact on making it easier to transport goods

In a letter called “Operation Open Roads,” the 15 Republican governors claimed that President Joe Biden has increased regulations, which they said make things challenging on transporting goods. 

The governors of Arizona, Georgia, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Tennessee signed the letter. 

“We call on the Biden Administration to suspend outdated federal regulations that unnecessarily require commercial driver’s license holders to be 21 years old and lower the age to 18 years old so that well-trained, working adults can work across state borders,” the governors wrote. “In addition, we call on President Biden to suspend the burdensome federal mandate for COVID-19 vaccines for all private employees, specifically for the trucking and transportation industry so that driver shortages are not further exacerbated by an additional barrier to employment. 

“Further, we call on the Biden Administration to review and revise any federal policies that deter use or domestic manufacturing of essential transportation equipment, including intermodal containers, chassis, and automobiles, trucks, and tractor trailers. Finally, we call on President Biden to halt attempts to raise taxes, spend trillions more in taxpayer dollars, and grow the debt, all of which will cripple the American economy and spur inflation causing sky high consumer prices for American families.”

The governors committed to doing what they can on a state level to ease restrictions on transports. 

“Supply chain issues have led to shortages of raw materials and goods from factories to stores, and simple actions, like modifying weight limits, adjusting hours of service for truck drivers, and removing some non-safety-related restrictions on commercial drivers licenses will help ease a record-shortage of truck drivers and allow more goods to flow to market,” said Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.

In Ohio, DeWine has directed the Ohio Department of Transportation to reinstitute a pandemic-era program that allowed haulers to move heavier loads, up to 90,000 pounds, without getting pre-approval as long as they agree to report where they traveled after the trip is complete.

President Joe Biden said last week that by signing the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the cost of shipping will be reduced. 

“The bipartisan law will modernize our ports, our airports, our freight rail to make it easier for companies to get goods to market; reduce supply chain bottlenecks, as we're experiencing now; and lower cost for you and your family,” Biden said. 

The White House added that the legislation makes the single largest investment in repairing and reconstructing our nation’s bridges since the construction of the interstate highway system.