Texas busts 31 illegal immigrant truckers in one-day operation, most held California CDLs

The joint “commercial vehicle enforcement” operation took place on November 11 in Wheeler County and involved the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

During 105 commercial vehicle inspections, DPS troopers were unable to verify the lawful presence of 31 truck drivers, even though each presented a state-issued commercial driver’s license. All 31 were referred to ICE, which later confirmed that every one of them was in the United States illegally. According to DPS, most of the CDLs were issued in California, a state that allows driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants and has faced repeated scrutiny over its commercial licensing practices. None of the licenses came from Texas.

Governor Greg Abbott blasted California’s policies in his statement announcing the operation.

“Millions of Texans drive on our highways every day,” Abbott said. “When illegal immigrants break the law and illegally drive on our roads, they endanger the lives of countless Texans and Americans."

"While liberal states like California issue licenses to illegal immigrants and risk the lives of Americans, Texas will work with our federal partners to maintain safe roads and apprehend illegal immigrants to protect our communities.”

The discovery in Wheeler County comes amid a growing list of deadly incidents involving illegal immigrant truck drivers who obtained CDLs in states with weak or improperly enforced licensing standards. One of the most high-profile cases involved Harjinder Singh, an illegal immigrant who crossed the southern border in 2018. Despite failing English-language and road-sign tests, he obtained a California and Washington commercial driver’s license. In August, he was charged in Fort Pierce, Florida, for a catastrophic crash that killed three people. Federal investigators later determined that several states, including California and Washington, were issuing CDLs to individuals who did not meet federal requirements.

Another recent case involved Jashanpreet Singh, a 21-year-old illegal immigrant from India who entered the United States in 2022 and was released by the Biden administration under its “alternatives to detention” policy. In November, Singh was arrested on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated after allegedly plowing his semi-truck into congested traffic on Interstate 10 in San Bernardino County, California. The fiery crash killed at least three people and injured several others. Toxicology tests confirmed he was impaired, and ICE has since placed a detainer on him.

These cases have intensified scrutiny on states whose licensing systems allow foreign nationals who cannot read English, understand road signs, or verify identity documents to obtain commercial credentials, conditions that federal regulations explicitly prohibit.

Earlier this year, Florida filed a federal lawsuit against California and Washington, accusing both states of knowingly issuing commercial driver’s licenses to individuals who were neither lawfully present in the United States nor able to meet basic English-proficiency standards. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody argued that the states’ practices “exported danger across state lines,” enabling unqualified drivers to operate heavy trucks nationwide and contributing to deadly crashes like those in Florida and Southern California.

Florida’s complaint pointed to systemic failures inside California’s DMV system, including a now-exposed bribery and testing scandal that allowed unqualified applicants to obtain CDLs without passing required exams. Washington state, also named in the lawsuit, has faced its own federal audits over CDL testing irregularities. Together, the states account for a significant portion of CDLs held by recently apprehended unlawful drivers.

The Trump administration has already begun imposing consequences. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned earlier this fall that states failing to enforce federal English-language and eligibility rules for CDL holders would face financial penalties. In mid-October, he announced that the federal government would withhold more than $40 million in highway safety funding from California due to its refusal to comply with English-proficiency standards for commercial drivers.

“California is the only state in the nation that refuses to ensure big rig drivers can read road signs and communicate with law enforcement,” Duffy said. “This is a fundamental safety issue that impacts every family on America’s roads.”

Officials say the Texas operation was designed to do what some other states are not: confirm the identity and legal status of commercial drivers before they are allowed to haul freight across state lines. DPS troopers targeted suspicious CDLs, examined documentation, and ensured that commercial trucks were operating safely and legally.

While Texas continues to tighten enforcement, state and federal officials warn that the issue is not confined to one region. The surge in illegal immigrant CDL holders reflects a national safety crisis, created by a combination of lax border screening, permissive state licensing policies, and oversight failures that have allowed unqualified foreign nationals to operate some of the country’s largest and most dangerous vehicles.

More operations along Texas highways are expected in the coming weeks.