The Trump administration is severely restricting licensing eligibility for commercial drivers amid a slate of fatal crashes caused by foreign truckers.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) is restricting non-domiciled Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) to foreign nationals after a federal audit uncovered “catastrophic patterns” of states unlawfully issuing licenses to foreign truck drivers, according to a Friday announcement from Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy. Beginning immediately, non-citizens will not be given non-domiciled CDLs unless they meet a much stricter set of standards.
“What our team has discovered should disturb and anger every American,” Duffy said in a public statement. “Licenses to operate a massive, 80,000-pound truck are being issued to dangerous foreign drivers – often times illegally.”
“This is a direct threat to the safety of every family on the road, and I won’t stand for it,” Duffy continued. “Today’s actions will prevent unsafe foreign drivers from renewing their license and hold states accountable to immediately invalidate improperly issued licenses.”
Non-citizens who wish to earn a non-domiciled CDL must now undergo a mandatory federal immigration status check and have an employment-based visa, according to the DOT. The new requirements — which largely do not apply to lawful permanent residents — aim to crack down on illegal migrants who’ve managed to obtain CDLs while knowing little to no English, posing serious danger to American highways.
Non-domiciled CDLs are issued by state governments to individuals who are not residents of that state, typically applying to foreign nationals, according to FreightWaves. The term can generally apply to any person who isn’t an American citizen or green card holder who obtains a CDL in a state where they are not a resident.
High-profile and fatal accidents allegedly caused by illegal migrant truck drivers have spurned concern and investigation by the Trump administration.
An illegal migrant truck driver from India allegedly took an unlawful U-turn on a Florida turnpike in August, blocking all lanes and instantly killing three people in a car that smashed into the tractor-trailer. That same month in Maine, an illegal migrant driving a box truck ran off the road, causing two passengers to be hospitalized.
In both instances, the truck drivers allegedly demonstrated poor English. The driver allegedly behind the fatal Florida crash, Harjinder Singh, could only provide two correct answers out of a 12-question verbal English test.
The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday highlighted the plight of Marcus Coleman’s five-year-old daughter, who was left in critical condition in June 2024 after an illegal migrant truck driver caused a multi-vehicle wreck in California. Like Singh, the driver behind the horrific crash in California was an Indian national who earned a CDL issued by California state officials.
In response to the crashes, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) began conducting a nationwide audit, according to Duffy. The DOT secretary says the ongoing investigation has uncovered a pattern by state officials doling out licenses unlawfully to foreign drivers — with California allegedly being the most egregious actor.
In the Golden State, over 25% of non-domiciled CDLs reviewed in the audit were deemed to be improperly issued, with some licenses allegedly extending as far as four years beyond the expiration date of drivers’ lawful presence, according to the DOT. In one specific case, California officials gave a CDL to a Brazilian national with endorsements to drive a school bus that was valid for months after his lawful presence expired.
“California’s reckless disregard is frankly disgusting and an affront to the millions of Americans who expect us to keep them safe,” Duffy said in a public statement. “California must get its act together immediately or I will not hesitate to pull millions in funding.”
Duffy declared that California must immediately pause issuance of non-domiciled CDLs and identify all unexpired non-domiciled CDLs that do not comply with FMCSA regulations, among other directives. The state has 30 days to come into compliance or risk losing out on $160 million in federal highway funds, with that number doubling by the second year.
“To every other state around the country – find all improperly issued CDLs and revoke their licenses now,” Duffy went on. “We owe it to the American people to ensure only lawful, qualified drivers are operating big rigs on our highways.”
The trucking industry appears to have welcomed the crackdown, deeming such moves will make American highways safer.
The president of the American Trucking Associations, which represents more than 37,000 motor carriers and suppliers throughout the U.S., released a statement Friday supporting DOT’s actions, saying that rules “only work when they are consistently enforced, and it’s imperative that all state driver licensing agencies comply with federal regulations.”
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