This bond requirement affects Georgia and South Dakota only.

On May 12, 2015, Georgia House Bill 118 was approved and signed into law. With the enactment of this bill, third parties who provide skills tests for individuals seeking a commercial driver’s license are now required to post a surety bond as a form of financial security. Similar to Georgia HB 118, in March of 2015, South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard signed Senate Bill 41 into law requiring private third party testers to post a $10,000 surety bond.

These bonds exist in order to prevent consumers from facing unethical or unprincipled acts of business. If it’s discovered that the principal (third party tester) does not remain in compliance with both local and state laws, test takers will not face any unjust financial harm due to protection from the surety bond.

GA HB 118 amends Chapter 5, Section 40 of the Georgia Code Annotated. In addition to now being required to post a surety bond, prospective third party entities providing skills tests for commercial drivers must also submit to a background check before they will be legally allowed to conduct business.

A sample Georgia Third Party Tester Application for the commercial driver’s license (CDL) program can be found here.

SD SB 40 makes amendments to Commercial Driver’s Licenses and Permits Chapter 32-12a of the South Dakota Legislature. Third party testers that are considered government entities are not required to post a bond.

For more information on how to become a third party skills test administrator for the CDL program in Georgia or South Dakota, please refer to the GA Department of Driver Services or the SD Department of Public Safety.

Photo courtesy erik aldrich (CC BY-ND)