FMCSA audit

Tennessee has notified approximately 8,800 CDL holders that they must provide proof of citizenship or lawful presence by April 6 or face an automatic downgrade to a standard driver’s license. The move follows Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s escalating enforcement campaign that has already frozen California’s non-domiciled licensing program and threatened multiple states with the loss of federal highway funds.

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.

Regulators are threatening to withhold up to $151 million from Pennsylvania and potentially decertify its CDL program over uncorrected non-domiciled license errors.

DOT auditors are investigating whether FMCSA is ensuring states are properly testing CDL applicants on their English skills.

FMCSA audits shape your safety rating, impact your ability to haul freight and determine if your company stays on the road. In 2025, with scrutiny rising and technology advancing, understanding how these reviews unfold is mission-critical.

Trucking fleets that still use pen and paper to meet their recordkeeping requirements are adding unnecessary costs and complexity, and upping the chance of a recordkeeping violation during an FMCSA audit.