Daijiworld Media Network - California
California, Jan 8: California will lose $160 million in federal funding for delaying the revocation of roughly 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses issued to immigrants, federal transportation officials announced on Wednesday.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy had already withheld $40 million, citing the state’s failure to enforce English proficiency requirements for truck drivers. The move comes after a federal audit revealed that some commercial licenses were still valid long after an immigrant’s visa had expired, and a small portion was even issued to citizens of Mexico and Canada who did not qualify. More than a quarter of the licenses in a sample reviewed were deemed unlawful.
California had originally notified these drivers in the fall that their licenses would be revoked, but last week the state announced a delay until March after immigrant groups sued, arguing some communities were unfairly targeted. Duffy criticized the decision, stating the state missed the Jan. 5 deadline to revoke the unlawful licenses.
“Our demands were simple: follow the rules, revoke the unlawfully-issued licenses to dangerous foreign drivers, and fix the system so this never happens again,” Duffy said. “Governor Gavin Newsom has failed to do so — putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people.”
The crackdown intensified after several fatal crashes involving unauthorized truck drivers, including a Florida crash in August that killed three people. Duffy had earlier threatened to withhold funds from multiple states, including California, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, New York, Texas, South Dakota, Colorado, and Washington, after audits revealed that commercial licenses were valid long after immigrant truckers’ work permits expired.
Federal enforcement and industry reaction
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) stated that California failed to honor its November promise to revoke all flawed licenses by Jan. 5 and unilaterally postponed the revocation of about 4,700 additional licenses until March. FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs warned that the agency would not accept a plan that knowingly leaves unqualified drivers behind the wheel of large trucks.
Trucking trade associations have welcomed the enforcement, arguing it removes unqualified drivers and addresses long-standing safety risks. Todd Spencer, president of the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association, said, “For too long, loopholes in this program have allowed unqualified drivers onto our highways, putting professional truckers and the motoring public at risk.”
Legal challenges and Sikh drivers spotlight
The issue has gained attention as some of the drivers involved in recent fatal crashes were Sikh. The Sikh Coalition and Asian Law Caucus filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of California drivers, claiming immigrant truckers are being unfairly targeted.
Immigrants make up about 20% of all truck drivers, though non-domiciled immigrant licenses represent only about 5% of all commercial licenses — roughly 200,000 drivers. While the Transportation Department proposed tighter restrictions on which noncitizens could receive licenses, a court has temporarily blocked these new rules.