Over the past few months, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has exposed significant abuses involving commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) granted to immigrants. This research dives deep into eight targeted states. These findings could lead to substantial financial penalties and loss of federal funding for the affected states, raising serious concerns about public safety and compliance with federal regulations.
In California, the state had to recently revoke 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses after the DMV discovered irregularities. These were the direct results of investigations undertaken by the FMCSA, as they served to uncover licenses that had been issued in error. This action comes on the heels of a national investigation into licensing burdens in a number of states, which can have devastating economic repercussions. If California doesn’t address these concerns satisfactorily, it risks losing up to $160 million in federal funds.
Minnesota finds itself in a particularly unlucky situation. The substantial penalty up to $13.25 million could be levied by the state’s Transportation Department if they are not satisfied with the actions taken to remedy any found licensing inconsistencies. Pennsylvania is at a critical juncture. If the state cannot demonstrate compliance with federal standards for immigrant commercial licenses, the state stands to lose $75 million.
Texas is looking at a possible hit of $182 million. To avoid that outcome, the state should rework its licensing programs and revoke any bad licenses. In a statement responding to the FMCSA’s findings, a spokesperson for Texas Governor Greg Abbott emphasized Texans’ commitment to public safety. Their announcement read in part,
“public safety is the Governor’s top priority, and we must ensure that truckers can navigate Texas roadways safely and efficiently. To support this mission, Governor Abbott directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to strictly enforce English language proficiency requirements and to stop issuing intrastate commercial driver’s licenses to drivers who do not meet those standards.”
Colorado is ground zero for this deepening disaster. The majority of the state’s commercial licenses were granted to immigrants who hired unqualified personnel to take the test. Thanks to a glitch in Colorado’s computer system, this was the case. In particular, when workers triggered repeated queries in a federal homeland security immigration database, it switched licenses back to a four year validity period. These investigators found that nearly 22% of the 99 licenses they examined in Colorado failed to meet these basic federal requirements.
South Dakota had recently come to the attention of enforcement for having issued numerous licenses to Canadian citizens who could not otherwise qualify. At the same time, Washington state authorized 685 immigrant drivers with standard commercial licenses when they should have received non-domiciled ones. In Washington’s 125 licenses explicitly reviewed by investigators, they found serious problems in nearly 10% of them.
New York’s situation is alarming as well. The state issued commercial licenses to noncitizens, many of which defaulted to an eight-year validity period, regardless of when an immigrant’s work permit expired. Derek Barrs, deputy administrator of the FMCSA, urged New York officials to act quickly.
“New York must act immediately to comprehensively audit its CDL program and revoke every single illegally issued license.”
The FMCSA has proposed new restrictions that would severely limit which noncitizens could obtain a license to drive a semi or bus. Nearly 9,500 truck drivers have been removed from the nation’s roadways. English proficiency was not proven on a roadside stop, or an inspection.
States now find themselves racing to address licensing barriers. These possible fiscal impacts underscore the importance of ensuring states comply with federal law. The FMCSA’s own investigations continue to find serious systemic issues that endanger public safety. All of these issues further complicate the ability of immigrant drivers to drive legally on U.S. roadways.
