CDL Training/Disaster Affected Areas.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 1
HOUSE BILL 892

Short Title: CDL Training/Disaster Affected Areas. (Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Lambeth and Arp (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
Referred to: Appropriations, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
April 14, 2025
*H892-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO ESTABLISH A GRANT PROGRAM AT THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 2
TO ASSIST RESIDENTS AFFECTED BY HURRICAN E HELENE IN OBTAININ G A 3
COMMERCIAL DRIVERS LICENSE AND POST-TRAINING EMPLOYMENT. 4
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
SECTION 1.(a) The Department of Commerce shall establish a grant program to 6
encourage and facilitate residents of Western North Carolina that were impacted by Hurricane 7
Helene to obtain commercial drivers licenses (CDLs). The grant program established in this 8
section shall provide funds to a qualifying CDL training provider to cover the cost of CDL 9
training programs and shall provide stipends for temporary accommodations for trainees in the 10
CDL programs receiving funding under this section. A qualifying CDL training pr ovider shall 11
meet the following criteria: 12
(1) Must offer a four-week accelerated CDL training program. 13
(2) Must be authorized to conduct on-site CDL testing to streamline licensing. 14
(3) Must have enrollment and training facilities within a 75 -mile radius o f 15
Asheville. 16
SECTION 1.(b) The Department of Commerce shall provide a qualifying CDL 17
training provider a grant equaling four thousand dollars ($4,000) per trainee, payable to the 18
qualifying CDL training provider upon successful completion of the program a nd the receipt of 19
a CDL by the trainee. The Department of Commerce shall also provide a grant equaling one 20
thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) for trainees needing accommodations during their 21
participation in the CDL training program, payable directly to participating local hotels or motels 22
proximally located to the CDL training facility, for trainees that demonstrate a financial need and 23
that do not reside in close proximity to the CDL training facility. The Department shall award no 24
more than two hundr ed seventy -seven thousand five hundred dollars ($277,500) of funds 25
appropriated in this act for grants for trainee accommodations. A trainee under this section shall 26
be a resident of this State, and priority shall be given to residents of a county affected by 27
Hurricane Helene. The Department of Commerce shall establish a streamlined application 28
system, including options for online and in -person applications, to verify residency, assess 29
financial need, and facilitate program enrollment. In addition, the Department of Commerce shall 30
organize partnerships with (i) local hotels and motels for receipt of grants for trainee stipends 31
and (ii) local employers and construction firms to assist graduates of the CDL training program 32
in securing employment directly linked to disaster recovery and rebuilding efforts. 33
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 892-First Edition
SECTION 1.(c) For the purposes of this section, the terms "CDL training provider" 1
and "CDL training programs" refer to entry -level driver training, as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 2
380.605. 3
SECTION 2. Notwithstanding G.S. 143C-5-2, there is appropriated from the 4
General Fund to the Department of Commerce the sum of two million five hundred thousand 5
dollars ($2,500,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2025-2026 fiscal year to be used for the grant 6
program described in Section 1 of this act. 7
SECTION 3. This act becomes effective July 1, 2025. 8