Bill would restore overtime pay rights to truck drivers

What it does

This bill removes a specific overtime-pay exemption from federal labor law that currently allows certain employees—primarily long-haul truck drivers—to work unlimited hours without triggering overtime wages. By striking the exemption, the bill would require employers to pay overtime rates (time-and-a-half) for hours worked beyond 40 per week, extending the same wage protections that apply to most workers to truckers.

Why we flagged it

The bill's sole operative mechanism is restoring overtime-wage rights to a specific class of workers by removing a statutory exemption. It is a straightforward labor-standards amendment with no hidden provisions or riders.

What the text implies

• Trucking companies may respond by reducing hours per driver, hiring additional drivers, or raising shipping rates to offset overtime costs—potentially affecting consumer freight costs and driver employment patterns.
• The bill does not address independent contractors or owner-operators, who fall outside FLSA coverage; only W-2 employees would be affected.
• Enforcement depends on DOL resources; underfunded wage-and-hour divisions may limit practical impact despite the legal change.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Truck drivers and other workers covered by the struck exemption gain a concrete wage protection—mandatory overtime pay for hours beyond 40 per week. This increases take-home pay for a workforce that often works 60+ hour weeks and has historically faced wage suppression due to the exemption.

Who stands to gain

• truck drivers and affected workers (wage increase)
• labor unions representing trucking workers (potential organizing leverage)

Named in the bill

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, Section 13(b)(1), truck drivers, Department of Labor, trucking industry

Where it stands

3 cosponsors: 2 Democrats, 1 Republicans.

• Mar 6, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Mar 6, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

3 lobbying clients named this bill on 3 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $3,952,237 in lobbying spend. A filing names 78 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 61% of bills with at least one filing.

Jefferson Van Drew, the sponsor, reported $364,000 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle. $2,000 of that came from 1 PAC tied to these lobbying clients.

• Fedex Corporation — $2,930,000 on 1 filing
• American Trucking Associations — $720,000 on 1 filing
• Owner-operator Independent Drivers Association — $302,237 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 22, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.