200,000 immigrant truck drivers set to lose CDL eligibility amid safety crackdown

Under the rule, non-citizens, including asylum seekers, refugees, and recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), will no longer be eligible to obtain CDLs, even if they are legally authorized to work in the United States. Those who already hold licenses will not be able to renew them as they expire. Federal data indicates that about 200,000 immigrants currently hold CDLs, accounting for roughly 5 percent of all commercial truck drivers nationwide.

According to The Washington Post, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the move is aimed at addressing safety concerns that have come under increasing scrutiny following a series of high-profile crashes involving immigrant truck drivers. “For far too long, America has allowed dangerous foreign drivers to abuse our truck licensing systems, wreaking havoc on our roadways,” Duffy said when announcing the rule.

The policy shift comes after months of intensified federal action targeting immigrant truckers. The Department of Transportation has ramped up enforcement of English-language proficiency requirements during roadside inspections, resulting in thousands of drivers losing their ability to operate commercially. Federal regulators have also revoked the accreditation of nearly 3,000 driver training centers that failed to meet national standards.

The administration has warned that states could face the loss of federal transportation funding if they fail to comply with federal CDL regulations. States such as California, New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania have already been flagged in federal audits over licensing practices.

The crackdown follows several deadly and high-profile crashes involving illegal immigrant truck drivers that drew national attention and were cited by federal officials as justification for tighter controls.

In one case highlighted by the Department of Homeland Security, Indian national Sukhdev Singh, who was in the US illegally, was arrested after allegedly striking a pedestrian with a semi-truck in Indianapolis, leaving the victim in critical condition. Singh had been issued a commercial driver’s license by the state of New York before the crash.

In Florida, an Indian truck driver was charged with vehicular manslaughter after allegedly making an illegal U-turn in a semi-truck on a highway crash that killed three people. Investigators said the driver failed an English proficiency test and could not identify basic traffic signs.

In Washington state, another illegal immigrant truck driver was arrested following a deadly crash in which his tractor-trailer slammed into stopped traffic, killing a 29-year-old man. Authorities said the driver made no attempt to brake and had allegedly falsified his electronic driving logs. Due to sanctuary state laws, he was released.

The issue has also raised concerns about how some drivers obtained licenses in the first place. Washington state officials acknowledged that nearly 700 commercial driver’s licenses were mistakenly issued over seven years to non-citizens who did not qualify.

During his State of the Union address, President Donald Trump called on lawmakers to pass legislation further restricting access to commercial licenses for immigrants. The following day, Sen. Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced a bill that would go even further than the administration’s rule by immediately revoking existing CDLs from migrants in the affected categories, rather than allowing them to expire over time.