Trump admin takes 'emergency action' to limit migrants' eligibility for commercial driver’s licenses

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Friday announced new rules for issuing commercial driver's licenses that seek to make it more difficult for migrants to acquire the licenses. 

The Transportation Department said the new rule  – "effective immediately" – comes in response to an ongoing nationwide audit by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and "a recent series of horrific, fatal crashes caused by non-domiciled drivers."

Among the most recent and well-known such crashes is the fatal one last month in Florida involving an illegal migrant truck driver. The driver, who is in the U.S. illegally, has a commercial driver's license from California.

He was attempting to make a U-turn in an unauthorized area with a commercial semi-truck with a trailer on the Florida Turnpike, but the trailer jackknifed and a minivan ran into it, killing all three of the minivan's passengers.

The new rule closes dangerous loopholes and "launches immediate enforcement action against California for gross negligence," the department also said in announcing the new rule.

Duffy said California has 30 days to comply with the new regulations, or his department will withhold federal highway funds starting at nearly $160 million. He also ordered the state to halt the issuance of commercial driver's licenses to migrants and to identify all unexpired licenses that fail to comply with federal regulations.

So-called "non-domiciled people" will now need an employment-based visa and to undergo a mandatory federal immigration status check using the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements system.

The secretary said part of the pressure on California is because drivers usually have nationwide routes, meaning that California licensees will be able to drive anywhere in the country. 

Colorado, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington also failed to follow federal regulations on issuing such licenses. 

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.