Ohio opens the way for the hearing impaired to obtain commercial driver’s licenses
CDL
Three Ohio state government agencies have teamed up to find a way for deaf or hearing impaired Ohioans, who qualify for a federal hearing exemption waiver, to train and test to get commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs).
Although the US Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration initiated the procedure in 2013, Ohio is one of the first states to start implementing testing. The three state agencies involved – Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Office of Criminal Justice Services, and Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD) – started developing specific test procedures that have been distributed to the hearing impaired community and to driver training schools, reports Truckinginfo.
Since the testing procedures were launched, there has been strong interest from many people in the deaf community. “This collaboration is another example of Ohio breaking down barriers to employment for individuals with disabilities,” says Kevin L. Miller, Executive Director of OOD. “It means jobs for Ohioans and an expanding workforce for Ohio employers.”
“We are proud that this partnership has helped set standards and guidelines for commercial driver’s license testing for the hearing impaired community in Ohio,” added BMV Registrar Don Petit. According to the agencies, there were no less than 28,000 job openings with a CDL requirement between April 2014 and May 2016. The CDL testing is available to people 18 years or older, holding a valid Ohio driver’s license.
Source: Truckinginfo
