The U.S. Department of Transportation has determined that Pennsylvania violated federal safety regulations by improperly issuing non‑domiciled commercial driver’s licenses, including to individuals who were not legally eligible to receive them, and is threatening to withhold nearly $75 million in federal funding unless the state revokes the licenses and fixes its verification processes, according to the Daily Wire.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has determined that Pennsylvania’s Department of Transportation (PennDOT) violated federal safety regulations by illegally issuing non‑domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs), including to people who were not legally eligible to receive them, the Daily Wire reports.
According to the outlet, FMCSA found that PennDOT failed to verify the lawful presence of some applicants and, in certain cases, issued non‑domiciled CDLs that extended beyond the recipients’ authorized stay in the United States. As a result, the Transportation Department is threatening to withhold nearly $75 million in federal funding unless Pennsylvania revokes all improperly issued licenses and corrects the systemic failures that allowed the violations.
The Daily Wire reports that the findings emerged amid a nationwide audit of non‑domiciled CDLs that began in June, shortly after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested a suspected terrorist who had illegally entered the United States and obtained a Pennsylvania CDL earlier in the summer. Secretary Duffy cited that case as evidence of the national‑security implications of lax CDL standards and criticized prior immigration policies for enabling such risks.
According to the Daily Wire account, USDOT has ordered Pennsylvania to take several immediate steps: pause all issuance or renewal of non‑domiciled CDLs and commercial learner’s permits (CLPs); conduct a thorough audit to identify all noncompliant licenses and the procedural failures behind them; and revoke any unexpired, improperly issued licenses to ensure unqualified drivers are removed from service.
The enforcement action is described as part of a broader set of transportation‑safety initiatives under the Trump administration. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing the Department of Transportation to strengthen roadway safety, with a particular focus on enforcing long‑standing English‑language proficiency requirements for commercial drivers, according to the Daily Wire.
The order states that English proficiency is essential for reading traffic signs, communicating with law‑enforcement and inspection officials, and performing basic safety and reporting functions. It instructs FMCSA to rescind its 2016 guidance and implement updated inspection procedures to ensure that drivers who are not proficient in English are placed out of service.
The executive order also directs FMCSA to review irregularities in states’ issuance of non‑domiciled CDLs and to improve verification of both domestic and international driving credentials.
In recent months, Secretary Duffy has introduced several related measures, the Daily Wire reports, including emergency restrictions on eligibility for non‑domiciled CDLs, a nationwide audit that exposed widespread non‑compliance, a pro‑trucker initiative aimed at reducing regulatory burdens, and new guidelines requiring out‑of‑service orders for drivers who fail English‑language requirements. According to the outlet, these steps align with a March order by President Trump designating English as the official language of the United States.