In a sweeping move that’s already sending shockwaves through the trucking industry and state governments, the U.S. Transportation Department has announced a dramatic tightening of commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements for non-citizens. The decision, revealed on September 26, 2025, comes after a series of tragic crashes this year—including a particularly deadly one in Florida—that officials say were caused by immigrant truck drivers who should never have been on the road in the first place.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, speaking with a bluntness that’s become his trademark, didn’t mince words. “Licenses to operate a massive, 80,000-pound truck are being issued to dangerous foreign drivers—often times illegally. This is a direct threat to the safety of every family on the road, and I won’t stand for it,” Duffy declared, according to Fox News. He added, “Today’s actions will prevent unsafe foreign drivers from renewing their license and hold states accountable to immediately invalidate improperly issued licenses.”
The catalyst for these sweeping changes was a fatal crash on August 12, 2025, on Florida’s Turnpike, about 50 miles north of West Palm Beach. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Harjinder Singh, a truck driver originally from California but first licensed in Washington, made an illegal U-turn that blocked the northbound lanes. A minivan traveling behind slammed into the trailer. The result was devastating: two passengers in the minivan died at the scene, and the driver died later at a hospital. Singh and his passenger were not injured. Singh now faces arraignment on September 29 in St. Lucie County, Florida, on charges of vehicular homicide and manslaughter, and federal authorities have requested his transfer to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody after his criminal case concludes.
This tragedy, as reported by the Associated Press, was just one of three fatal crashes this year—others occurring in Texas and Alabama—linked to non-citizen truck drivers who, officials say, never should have been licensed. The Texas incident in March involved a non-citizen driver with a history of unsafe lane changes and traffic violations who failed to brake, causing a 17-car pileup that killed five. In Alabama, a driver on his third day on the job, who had already failed a skills test, struck four vehicles at a red light, killing two people. In both cases, audits revealed that the drivers shouldn’t have received their licenses in the first place due to missing paperwork or improper issuance.
The fallout from these incidents prompted a nationwide audit by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The audit uncovered widespread problems, with improperly issued CDLs for non-citizens found in California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington. California, however, was singled out as the “most egregious” offender. According to the Transportation Department, one in four of the 145 non-citizen commercial licenses reviewed in California since June 2025 should never have been issued. Some licenses even remained valid years after the driver’s work permit had expired, a lapse blamed on weak oversight and programming errors.
Secretary Duffy didn’t hold back in his criticism. “California’s reckless disregard is frankly disgusting and an affront to the millions of Americans who expect us to keep them safe,” he said, as quoted by Fox News. “California must get its act together immediately, or I will not hesitate to pull millions in funding.” The threat is real: Duffy has given California 30 days to audit its CDL program and comply with federal rules or risk losing up to $160 million in federal funding. All states have been ordered to pause issuing commercial licenses to non-citizens until they can prove compliance with the new rules.
So, what exactly are these new requirements? From now on, only non-citizens holding an H-2a (temporary agricultural worker), H-2b (temporary non-agricultural worker), or E-2 (substantial business investor) visa will be eligible for a CDL. Merely possessing an employment authorization document is no longer sufficient. Additionally, all states must verify an applicant’s immigration status through the federal SAVE database, and these licenses will be valid for up to one year or until the visa expires, whichever comes first. The rules are not retroactive, meaning the roughly 190,000 of 200,000 non-citizen CDL holders who would now be ineligible can keep their licenses until renewal.
Supporters of the changes say they’re long overdue. Trade groups like the American Trucking Association (ATA) and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association had pushed for a federal audit earlier this year and welcomed the new enforcement. “Rules only work when they are consistently enforced, and it’s imperative that all state driver licensing agencies comply with federal regulations,” ATA President and CEO Chris Spear said, according to the Associated Press. Todd Spencer, who leads the independent drivers group, added, “These enforcement actions will also remove bad actors from the road and restore accountability to the system.”
But not everyone is convinced. California officials, for one, have defended their safety record and bristled at what they call political grandstanding. Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for Governor Gavin Newsom, dismissed Duffy’s threats, saying, “Former D-list reality star, now Secretary of Transportation, still doesn’t understand federal law. We’ll respond to today’s letter in due course.” She pointed out that California’s CDL holders have a lower crash rate than the national average and even lower than Texas, the only state with more licensed commercial drivers.
The politics of immigration and road safety have become deeply intertwined in the wake of these crashes. The Florida incident, in particular, has ignited a fierce war of words between the governors of Florida and California, with President Donald Trump and Secretary Duffy both expressing outrage. The fact that Harjinder Singh is a member of the Sikh faith has also put Sikh truck drivers under an uncomfortable spotlight, raising concerns about profiling and broader community impacts.
Meanwhile, industry observers are watching closely to see how these changes will ripple through the trucking world. Some, like Jonathan Marques of the Driving Academy in New Jersey, predict that removing non-citizen drivers could force companies to raise wages and attract more U.S.-born job seekers. Others worry about the potential for labor shortages, since non-citizens make up about 5% of CDL holders nationwide.
What’s clear is that the Transportation Department is determined to crack down on what it sees as dangerous loopholes. As Duffy put it at a recent news conference, “You do not want the blood of more traffic deaths on your hands, governors.” States have been put on notice: fix your licensing systems, or face the financial consequences.
The coming weeks will reveal whether states like California can satisfy federal demands—or whether the standoff will escalate further. For now, the message from Washington is unmistakable: when it comes to road safety, there’s no room for error or compromise.
