The Trump administration threatened Thursday to withhold nearly $75 million in federal funding from Pennsylvania if the state does not revoke what officials claim are illegally issued commercial driver’s licenses to immigrants.
According to The Associated Press, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s warning follows a similar push against California. Both states are led by Democratic governors, Gavin Newsom and Josh Shapiro, who have been vocal critics of Trump and are seen as potential 2028 presidential contenders.
Duffy has prioritized scrutinizing these licenses since August, when an unauthorized immigrant tractor-trailer driver made an illegal U-turn in Florida, causing a crash that killed three people. That incident thrust the issue into the national spotlight.
In a statement on Thursday, DOT spokesperson Danna Almeida said all states were under review. The exact number of affected drivers in Pennsylvania remains unclear. Shapiro’s administration, however, stated that federal officials had not identified a single commercial driver’s license issued to someone ineligible.
Still, a letter from the Trump administration cited an audit showing two out of 150 reviewed licenses were issued to individuals whose legal status exceeded their lawful presence in the U.S. In four cases examined, Pennsylvania reportedly provided no evidence that noncitizens were required to prove legal status before receiving a license.
The administration has demanded that Pennsylvania halt issuing, renewing, or transferring commercial driver’s licenses and conduct a full audit to void any noncompliant licenses. Officials said approximately 12,400 noncitizen drivers currently hold unexpired commercial learner’s permits or licenses issued by the state.
Shapiro’s office said the state paused issuing these licenses after the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration proposed a rule in late September restricting which immigrants could qualify. Though a federal court has temporarily blocked the rule, Pennsylvania has not resumed issuing so-called non-domiciled CDLs.
The state also defended its processes after DHS reported arresting an Uzbek national with a Pennsylvania-issued CDL who was wanted in his home country for terrorist affiliations. Shapiro said the driver was properly authorized under federal records both at the time of issuance and when the database was rechecked this week.
“They clearly are not minding the shop, and they’ve gotta get better,” Shapiro said. “Every state relies on this database when determining CDL eligibility. We relied on the feds before issuing this one.”
California, which said it would revoke 17,000 licenses, remains the only state so far where the administration has completed an audit. Reviews in other states were delayed by the recent government shutdown, but the Transportation Department is urging all states to tighten verification standards.
