Coming to a farm near you: Commercial drivers licenses for tractor riding on your own land.
While most of us have been distracted with the debt ceiling issue for the last month or so, the rest of government has continued working on ways to make our life better.
Take the USDOT, for the last 60 days they’ve been taking public comment. See this article on changes that could have an impact on rural America: http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/about/news/news-releases/2011/USDOT-and-America-Farmers.aspx. It’s part of the president’s executive order forming the Rural Council of America, comprised of 25 federal departments, councils and agencies and chaired by the Secretary of Agriculture.
While the tone of the article seems to be so friendly, one must read between the lines. The statement “USDOT doesn’t have a long history of working with the agricultural community” is so true, but they still want to add another layer of control over the farmer, from requirements to obtaining a commercial driving license for using your tractor to controlling how you take you harvest to market.
The statement, “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help you”, comes to mind.
Mike Sabot
Leesburg
