Establishes the trucking industry workforce training fund.

Establishes a comprehensive grant program aimed at addressing workforce shortages in the commercial trucking industry in Massachusetts. The program, to be administered by the Board of Higher Education, will create collaborative partnerships between employers, educational institutions, workforce development organizations, and economic development entities to support training and education initiatives. The grant program seeks to improve employment opportunities for diverse populations including low-income individuals, women, minorities, and veterans, while focusing on developing workforce personnel such as truck drivers, mechanics, technicians, and support staff. Eligible applicants can include employers, workforce investment boards, educational institutions, high schools, training organizations, and career centers, with grants designed to complement existing funding sources. Grant proposals must outline specific goals for increasing trucking industry personnel, detail evidence-based programs, provide budgets, and specify anticipated participant enrollment and employment placement. The bill also requires annual reporting on program activities and outcomes, and mandates that the state registrar provide information about trucking industry careers to learner's permit applicants, thereby creating additional awareness and potential recruitment opportunities for the trucking workforce.

Pending Committee action.

02/27/2025 Referred to House Committee on Transportation.