Winneshiek County soon dropping CDL offerings

By Kate Klimesh,

(Originally published in the August 31 Public Opinion, available in print and online. Certain content is presented first to subscribers (print and digital), then released for consumption later)

During the Monday, Aug. 28, Winneshiek County Board of Supervisors meeting, Winneshiek County Treasurer Brenda Krietzer addressed the supervisors regarding CDL licensure. She explained that federal requirements that anyone seeking a CDL licensure must pass Entry-Level Drivers Training (ELDT) course at a registered provider recently came into effect. The County Treasurer’s Office has offered the written and skills testing for CDL for many years, but with the passage of the added required training, she noted traffic for the CDL skills testing has dropped considerably. “Since February this year, we’ve had two people come to the office for CDL testing. To keep staff certified, they have to complete a minimum of 10 CDL tests each, and that’s just not happening,” Kreitzer stated.

Some of the registered ELDT providers have simply gone to offering all testing requirements in a one-stop shop over one or two days, and providing a truck to use for driving skills for a standard fee. This makes it much more convenient than having to line up a truck to take the skills test at the courthouse, even if they have to drive to Waterloo or Mason City.

Late this fall, the testing requirements for the skills testing will also be changing, and Kreitzer noted it may be a good time to simply stop offering CDL licenses at the courthouse. “We were never going to make money on offering the CDLs, as we get paid $7 once a CDL is issued from our office. It was more about customer service, and right now, we don’t have the customers to warrant the cost of the service to the county,” she added. CDL written and skills testing will be offered through October, at least until the requirements for testing changes, then the county will no longer offer the skills testing, but will continue to offer written testing for CDL to residents.

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