Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has expanded statewide enforcement efforts across transportation and supply chain-related industries through separate actions targeting commercial driver training schools and corporate supplier diversity programs.
The moves come as Texas and federal officials increase scrutiny of issues ranging from commercial driver qualification standards and English-language proficiency enforcement to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) practices tied to supply chain contracting.
In one of the latest actions, Paxton’s office announced Tuesday that it sent a warning letter to CVS Health regarding the company’s supplier diversity practices tied to procurement and supply chain operations.
According to the attorney general’s office, CVS reserves a portion of its contracts for suppliers meeting certain demographic criteria, including minority-owned, women-owned and LGBTQ-owned businesses.
Paxton’s office said such programs “may violate state and federal civil rights laws” and could expose the company to liability under the Texas Health Care Program Fraud Prevention Act because CVS participates as a Medicaid pharmacy provider.
The attorney general’s office said CVS has 14 days to inform the state about steps it has taken to comply with state and federal anti-discrimination laws.
CVS Health operates a supply chain network with more than 22 distribution centers and a fleet of 2,500 delivery vehicles across the U.S. supporting more than 9,000 retail stores, pharmacy services and e-commerce platforms, according to its website.
A 2016 report indicated CVS Health’s supplier diversity initiatives supported more than 21,145 jobs within its supply chain at that time.
Related: Feds tell states: Enforce trucker English rules or lose millions
Texas launches investigation into trucking schools over English proficiency standards
The CVS action follows a separate statewide investigation launched April 28 into several truck driving schools amid allegations that some commercial drivers may be obtaining commercial driver’s licenses without meeting federal safety requirements, including English-language proficiency standards.
The investigation targets:
- EP Texas Trucking School
- Trucker Certified LLC
- Fast Track CDL LLC
- CDLCALL.COM LLC
- Lindenwood Education System, also known as Ancora
Federal regulations require CDL holders to “read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, understand highway traffic signs and signals in English, respond to official inquiries, and make entries on reports and records,” according to Paxton’s office.
State investigators allege some schools may have disregarded those requirements by advertising programs to non-English speakers, offering accelerated training timelines and falsely claiming certification status.
The schools named in the probe operate in major Texas freight markets, including El Paso, Odessa, San Antonio, Garland and Arlington, with graduates likely moving into trucking jobs across logistics hubs such as Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston.
EP Texas Trucking School provided the following statement to Border Report and KFOXTV: “We are aware of the concerns raised and take them seriously. Our school is committed to full compliance with all applicable state and federal standards and regulations.”
On Sept. 30, the Texas Department of Public Safety said it halted the issuance of CDLs to noncitizens following a federal directive aimed at tightening commercial licensing requirements.
Texas DPS said it would no longer issue, renew or reissue CDLs for drivers who are refugees, asylees or recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Pending applications and testing were also suspended until further notice.
A non-domiciled CDL is a commercial driver’s license issued to someone who is not a permanent resident of the state or the U.S. but is legally present for work.
Texas has recorded the highest total issuance of non-domiciled CDLs since 2015 among states that supplied data to a report by Overdrive.
Since 2015, Texas has issued more than 3.2 million total CDLs, including 51,993 to non-domiciled drivers. In 2024, Texas issued 6,265 CDLs to noncitizens.
Related: Texas stops issuing CDLs to non-citizens to comply with feds
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