Despite only extending the COVID-related hours of service waiver 45 days, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has issued a three-month extension of a waiver from certain commercial learner’s permit (CLP) regulations.
Since March 2020, FMCSA has granted waivers from the requirement that a CLP holder be accompanied by a CDL holder in the front seat of a commercial vehicle; from the restriction that limits a state administering a CDL skills test only to an out of state CDL applicant who has taken driver training in that state; and from the requirement that CLP holders are not eligible to take the CDL skills test in the first 14 days after initial issuance of the CLP.
FMCSA said extending the waiver through Nov. 30 will “continue the ability of intrastate and interstate CDL and CLP holders to transport goods and people and to provide flexibilities to State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs) to accelerate CDL testing.”
Under the terms of the waiver, a CLP holder can drive without an accompanying CDL holder present in the front seat of the vehicle, as long as the CDL holder is elsewhere in the cab. The CLP holder must also be in possession of evidence from the testing jurisdiction that he or she has passed the CDL driving skills test, and they have a valid non-CDL driver’s license, CLP and medical certificate.
Additionally, under the terms of the waiver, states can choose to administer a driving skills test to any out-of-state CDL applicant, regardless of where they received training.
Finally, states can choose to allow CLP holders to take the CDL skills test without waiting 14 days after initial issuance of the CLP, as long as the CLP holder has completed the applicable entry-level driver training requirements.
[Related: COVID-19 hours of service waiver extended 45 days to October 15]
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