In brief
The Transportation Department announced immediate changes to the requirements for non-citizen commercial drivers' licenses following multiple fatal crashes linked to improperly licensed drivers. A nationwide audit revealed significant compliance failures across several states, prompting intense scrutiny and potential funding repercussions for non-compliant states, notably California. The Department aims to enhance road safety amid controversy and political tension surrounding immigration issues.
The Transportation Department will immediately tighten requirements for non-citizens to obtain commercial drivers' licenses following three fatal crashes attributed to immigrant truck drivers who were not legally entitled to hold those licenses.
The decision comes after a nationwide audit was initiated after a tragic U-turn crash in Florida resulted in the deaths of two people due to a truck driver who was living in the country illegally. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy highlighted that similar fatal incidents involving unlicensed truck drivers also occurred in states like Texas and Alabama.
Duffy has also indicated a potential withdrawal of $160 million in federal funding from California, where an audit uncovered that one in four of the 145 commercial drivers' licenses issued to non-citizens since June did not meet the appropriate regulations. California has been given a 30-day deadline to review its licensing system and propose necessary compliance measures or face funding consequences.
The audit revealed that many states, including California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington, have not adhered strictly enough to existing licensing guidelines.
“We have a government system designed to keep American families on the road safe. But that system has been compromised,” Duffy said.
Under the new rules, all states are required to pause the issuance of commercial drivers' licenses to non-citizens until they align with the updated standards. Officials project that around 190,000 out of 200,000 non-citizens currently holding commercial licenses should not have been granted due to the new regulations, which are not retroactive.
The Florida incident, which has sparked political controversy, involved Harjinder Singh, a truck driver who made an illegal turn, resulting in the tragic deaths of three individuals in a minivan. Singh is now facing charges including vehicular homicide and further scrutiny from federal authorities regarding his immigration status.
