The Trump administration plans to step up its crackdown of non-domiciled CDL drivers by using AI to smoke out the companies that hire them.
The two-day Driver Legitimacy Summit will convene in Atlanta on Feb. 5-6 to address risks to the industry posed by unauthorized and fraudulent commercial truck drivers.
The Trump administration’s decision to drop its appeal that tied billions in transportation funding to immigration enforcement represents a significant legal setback, but don’t mistake this tactical retreat for surrender. For motor carriers employing non-domiciled CDL holders, the regulatory battlefield has only shifted, not cleared.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy threatened to withhold $50 million from North Carolina after an audit found the state illegally issued over half of its foreign driver CDLs.
The U.S. government has withheld millions in truck safety funds from California for missing a deadline to cancel thousands of CDLs issued to foreign nationals.
The U.S. Postal Service is moving to eliminate foreign truck drivers who are ineligible to work in the U.S. from third-party motor carriers.
Truck crash victim advocates want FMCSA to permanently scrap its teen-driver pilot program, calling it a lethal risk to road safety.
A class-action lawsuit filed in Alameda County seeks to block California’s Jan. 5 cancellation of nearly 20,000 commercial driver’s licenses. The plaintiffs argue the DMV is punishing immigrant drivers for the agency’s own administrative failures while refusing to let them reapply for corrected credentials, violating state law and due process.
Small fleet owner Steve Troyer says non-domiciled CDL drivers and weak enforcement are undercutting compliant carriers.
An FMCSA audit found that New York unlawfully issued CDLs to foreign applicants with expired visas, prompting an order to halt issuance or face a loss of funding.
Over the past several days, screenshots like the one circulating below have spread rapidly across trucking social media. The letter, issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), notifies a driver that their non-domiciled Commercial Learner’s Permit or CDL has been cancelled effective immediately, citing non-compliance with federal regulations. Naturally, that has triggered a […]
When a November 2025 draft memo from the Department of Transportation surfaced promising a groundbreaking “data-driven severity matrix” to catch chameleon carriers, it raised uncomfortable questions about ARCHI (Application Review and Chameleon Investigation), built with $3.5 million in congressional funding in 2012-2013. Is this bureaucratic amnesia, rebranding of an underperforming system, or evidence that FMCSA’s chameleon detection infrastructure has been quietly abandoned?
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Monday that 9,500 truck drivers have been taken off the road for failing English-language requirements.
Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith is urging colleagues to use a transportation spending bill to clamp down on CDL violators.
Trucking executives say surging transient foreign labor, fraudulent CDLs and lax oversight have been undercutting legitimate U.S. carriers.
A federal appeals court is holding in abeyance a lawsuit against FMCSA’s non-domiciled CDL restrictions until the agency issues a final rule.
The Trump administration’s crackdown on non-domiciled CDLs was carried out with no evidence safety was at risk, according to states.
CDL schools are exploiting federal loopholes and flooding the trucking industry with untrained drivers, industry exec says.
FMCSA is cracking down on illegal CDL training by banning thousands of providers and warning 4,000 more that they risk getting banned as well.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit found FMCSA likely violated federal law when it attempted to eliminate approximately 200,000 commercial driver licenses without following standard procedures. The November 13 emergency stay revealed failures that leave 200,000 drivers in legal limbo while courts define the boundaries of administrative power during claimed emergencies.
Border agents in Arizona recently sent two truckers back to Mexico, part of a Trump-era push targeting immigrant and non-domiciled CDL holders.
Regulators are threatening to withhold up to $151 million from Pennsylvania and potentially decertify its CDL program over uncorrected non-domiciled license errors.
U.S. Custom Harvesters is urging FMCSA to clarify a CDL exemption for H-2A workers – and to exempt other visa holders – to prevent a bureaucratic crisis from crippling the nation’s crop harvesting workforce.
As California revokes 17,000 non-domiciled CDLs amid a feud between Governor Newsom and Secretary Duffy, industry experts warn motor carriers to prepare for liability risks and a hit to freight capacity.
US DOT announced that California revoked thousands of commercial driver’s licenses, accusing the state of illegally issuing them to ineligible foreign drivers.
A federal appeals court has temporarily paused FMCSA’s new rule restricting non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses following a lawsuit by a truck driver.
Legislation to mandate English proficiency for drivers on federal ride-share contracts mirrors new trucking rules and threatens companies like Uber with a five-year ban.
Non-domiciled CDL restrictions placing war refugees into crisis mode, Ukrainian drivers tell FMCSA.
Transportation Secretary said on Thursday that 7,248 truck drivers have been placed out of service for failing English proficiency tests.
Overview of Current Issues in Truck Driver Training and Licensing The trucking industry faces a critical safety crisis that has largely gone unnoticed by the American public. Each year, approximately 100,000 truck crashes occur on U.S. highways, resulting in roughly 5,000 fatalities annually. These alarming statistics point to serious flaws in the system that qualifies […]
I am a DOT Safety and Compliant consultant, with 23 years of industry experience. I’ve seen the issues with the current CDL system and believe there are solutions that can significantly improve safety and eliminate fraud. – Tab Caticha How to Overturn the CDL System: A Comprehensive Reform Proposal The Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) system, […]
The American trucking industry is facing unprecedented challenges, marked by a deepening economic crisis and deteriorating highway safety standards. While supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic brought attention to the transportation sector, the narrative surrounding these issues has been largely mischaracterized, particularly regarding the nature and extent of the purported truck driver shortage in […]
OOIDA wants Congress to eliminate CDL waivers and strengthen training standards, asserting that the trucking industry has a driver overcapacity problem, not a shortage.
A Texas trucking CEO said English language enforcement varies from state-to-state, confusing drivers and exposing flaws in how the law is applied.
Republican senators are employing a multi-bill strategy to force enactment of English-only CDL testing and immigration-related licensing restrictions.
The Trump administration’s pause on work visas for foreign truck drivers — combined with tighter ICE enforcement — is creating upheaval in the cross-border freight market.
California is losing over $40 million in federal funds after its inspectors failed to enforce the Trump administration’s English language rule for truck drivers.
Senate Republicans introduced a companion bill to codify strict English proficiency standards for truckers, using the legislative tactic to speed up its potential passage.
Enforcement and Insurance Implications A change in insurance policies could be coming to the trucking industry, signaling a major shift in their approach to non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs). As enforcement of the new non-domiciled CDL rule takes shape, insurance companies are likely to position themselves to avoid potential liability exposure. According to an insurance […]
Trucking companies face a liability risk and a capacity crunch due to FMCSA’s new CDL restrictions.
New research finds a correlation between truck drivers who violate English-language proficiency rules and bad carrier safety but does not prove a direct cause.
Legislation introduced in Congress could make it more difficult for Mexican and Canadian truckers to get authority to haul to and from the U.S.
California and Oregon have suspended issuing non-domiciled CDLs following an emergency DOT order, as federal officials cite safety risks.
Legislation would make the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico “states” for CDL purposes and allow their drivers to avoid foreign-driver restrictions on the mainland.
Texas has suspended the issuance of commercial driver licenses to non-citizens following a new federal directive aimed at tightening licensing rules.
Interim final rule immediately limits eligibility following multiple fatal crashes in 2025 and scrutiny from the trucking community.
Federal watchdogs are once again questioning whether we have one CDL standard or 50. With nearly 5,000 truck and bus fatalities last year and English proficiency enforcement under fire, the new OIG audit could reshape how states test, license, and oversee drivers nationwide.
DOT auditors are investigating whether FMCSA is ensuring states are properly testing CDL applicants on their English skills.
New legislation turns weigh stations into English proficiency checkpoints.
Texas is tightening enforcement of federal English-language rules for truckers under Gov. Greg Abbott’s new directive.
The Trump administration threatens to cut funds to California, New Mexico and Washington, over trucker English enforcement.
The Trump administration announced Thursday night it is immediately pausing issuing of worker visas for commercial truck drivers.
FMCSA investigation into last week’s Florida Turnpike crash that killed three people will focus on the driver and his trucking company.
A commercial tractor-trailer’s illegal U-turn on Florida’s Turnpike last week killed three people in a minivan that collided with the trailer at highway speed, putting new focus on critical flaws in commercial driver licensing and training standards that have made America’s highways increasingly dangerous.
The trucking industry finds itself mired in one of the most protracted freight recessions on record, a predicament exacerbated by a flood of capacity that has outstripped demand. This surplus stems from an industry with negligible barriers to entry, where supply can readily overshoot, challenging the American Trucking Associations’ (ATA) persistent claim of a perpetual […]
(The views expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of FreightWaves or its affiliates.) “BE AFRAID OF FREIGHT FRAUD!” It’s no surprise when another freight fraud headline lands in our inbox, shows up on LinkedIn, or makes its way into a conversation. Freight fraud is a trending […]
New immigration restrictions could curb driver availability, trigger a massive capacity crunch, and pull the trucking industry out of The Great Freight Recession. The Trump administration’s English Language Proficiency (ELP) mandate, effective June 2025, is already limiting the 3.5 million driver pool, particularly impacting immigrants, who according to the BLS account for at least 20% […]
President Trump is expected to sign legislation that extends business-friendly provisions included in the 2017 tax cuts.
The Freight Fraud Crisis The trucking industry is grappling with a surge in freight fraud, leaving carriers, brokers, and shippers vulnerable to sophisticated scams like identity theft and unauthorized double brokering. These schemes disrupt supply chains, undermine trust, and cause significant financial and logistical challenges. The root cause is the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s […]
The English Language Proficiency (ELP) rule, now in effect, could significantly reduce trucking capacity. For a decade, large truckload carriers have embraced regulations like the ELD mandate and Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse to limit market capacity, but effects were typically short-lived. The ELP mandate, enforced by a DOT Executive Order, requires commercial drivers to demonstrate […]
New legislation would mandate that all truck drivers be tested for proficiency in speaking and reading English before being allowed on the road.
If you think you know where new trucking companies are planting roots, think again. Yes, Texas and California still lead the nation in raw numbers of new MCs granted. But something very different is happening when you zoom in. Quiet ZIP codes like 93722 (Fresno, CA) and 78045 (Laredo, TX) are quietly leading the nation […]
The trucking industry has faced its longest and deepest downturn in history, beginning in March 2022. This prolonged slump, known as the Great Freight Recession, has driven many trucking companies out of business. A sluggish goods economy contributed, but the primary cause is excess capacity. During the COVID-19 pandemic, high freight rates and government stimulus, […]
Digging into data on U.S. truck drivers reveals a scary fact: 4 out of every 100 drivers on the road are driving without valid licenses.
Critics of the reinstatement of English language proficiency out-of-service violations argue that the directive is more political than practical and risks diverting attention from more pressing safety issues on U.S. highways.
State and federal officials are looking at ways to close loopholes and tighten regulations that govern how non-U.S. truck drivers gain the right to operate within the U.S.
Texas law enforcement, faced with a sharp increase in the number of truckers who had the Mexican equivalent of a U.S. CDL, used an informal geography test to learn that many of those individuals were from Honduras, Guatemala or other nations.
There is no easy fix: Enhancing trucking safety and driver competence, as well as combating CDL fraud, will take an all-hands-on-deck effort at every level of government.
Illegal work by B-1 visa truck drivers does serious harm to the U.S. trucking industry, stakeholders said.
More scrutiny of truck drivers and fraudulent CDLs could have operational and cost implications for trucking companies.
Non-domiciled CDL holders are just a small sliver of a bigger issue with how CDLs are issued and regulated.
Fraudulent CDL holders, improper training programs and language barriers are only a scratch on the surface of the systemic problems with the way commercial vehicles are licensed in the U.S.
