PTIO Supports Skills Development, Lifelong Learning Bills for American Workers

Washington, D.C.— The Partnership for Transportation Innovation and Opportunity (PTIO) – which includes the American Trucking Associations, Daimler, FedEx, Ford, Lyft, Toyota Motor North America, Uber, and Waymo – today announced its support for two bills that would update the tax code to support American workers who seek to take advantage of opportunities for lifelong learning and skills development.

In letters to the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means and the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, PTIO expressed its support for the Skills Investment Act of 2019 (S. 275 / H.R. 898), introduced by Senators Amy Klobuchar and Ben Sasse and Representatives Glenn Thompson and Derek Kilmer, and the Lifelong Learning and Training Account Act of 2019 (S. 539), introduced by Senators Mark Warner and Chris Coons.

“PTIO members believe that fostering a culture of lifelong learning is a valuable step in empowering workers to succeed alongside an evolving workplace,” said Kathryn Branson, executive director of PTIO. “Advancing and new technology will require reforms to an educational system that traditionally concludes prior to the beginning of a career.

“We applaud Senators Klobuchar, Sasse, Warner and Coons, as well as Representatives Thompson and Kilmer, for their leadership on this issue,” Branson continued, “and we commit to working together with these policymakers and other stakeholders to ensure that public policy supports an American workforce that must operate and compete in an era defined by innovation and change.”

“For us to solve the problems brought about a more automated future, we need everyone at the table: workers, industry, and government,” said Senator Mark Warner (D-VA). “By providing a generous government match and a vehicle for workers to manage and save for training expenses, this lifelong learning bill with Senator Coons presents an opportunity to act quickly to help millions of workers across the United States. I am glad to see PTIO and all of its member companies bringing the support of industry to the table.”

“Economic change can be enormously disruptive, and in recent years, we’ve seen technology fundamentally change some professions,” said Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06). “It’s important that American workers be empowered to navigate economic change rather than to be victims of it. I appreciate PTIO’s support of the Skills Investment Act, which enables workers to save money to invest in themselves and their futures – helping them afford to enroll in apprenticeships, college classes, or retraining programs, and consequently, enabling workers to learn new skills, land new jobs, and earn bigger paychecks.”

To read PTIO’s letter in full, click here.