U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy Wednesday made good on his threat to yank millions of dollars of federal funds from California if the state didn't revoke thousands of commercial driver's licenses he said were issued illegally.
Duffy announced the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is withholding about $160 million from California for failing to cancel over 17,000 CDLs the agency said were illegally issued by the Jan. 5 deadline.
Two major trucking advocacy organizations reacted to Duffy's announcement, both urging California officials to cooperate with the FMCSA.
California had originally agreed to revoke the CDLs improperly issued to some non-domiciled drivers, but halted the process when a lawsuit was filed on behalf of foreign drivers challenging the revocations.
The FMCSA issued a Final Determination after California refused to cancel the licenses on time.
“It’s reckoning day for Gavin Newsom and California. 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,” said Duffy. “Gavin Newsom has failed to do so, putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people. While Gavin may not care about protecting you and your family on our roads, the Trump Administration does. We’re pulling this funding to ensure federal tax dollars don’t fund this charade.”
The $160 million is a National Highway Performance Program and Surface Transportation Block Grant.
As part of a nationwide non-domiciled CDL audit, FMCSA said it found what it called "a systemic collapse of California’s non-domiciled CDL program, which allowed the state to illegally issue licenses with expiration dates extending years beyond a driver’s lawful presence and to grant CDLs to individuals who were ineligible to hold them."
In total, more than 20,000 active non-domiciled CDLs were issued by California in violation of federal safety regulations, according to Duffy's statement.
“Federal regulations are clear: states must correct safety deficiencies on a schedule mutually agreed upon by the agency, and California failed to meet its commitment to rescind these unlawfully-issued licenses by January 5,” said FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs. “We will not accept a corrective plan that knowingly leaves thousands of drivers holding noncompliant licenses behind the wheel of 80,000-pound trucks in open defiance of federal safety regulations.”
In September, a nationwide audit of trucking licenses found more than 25% of non-domiciled CDLs issued by California were issued unlawfully, including with licenses extending as many as four years beyond the expiration date of their lawful presence documentation, according to Duffy's statement.
In response to Duff's actions, the American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear issued a statement, which said:
"Ensuring the safety of our nation’s roadways depends on consistent application and enforcement of commercial driver licensing standards nationwide. USDOT has raised ongoing concerns over the past several months that certain California-issued licenses did not fully comply with federal CDL requirements, posing potential risks to public safety.
“A CDL assures the motoring public that a driver has met rigorous safety standards — standards that must be enforced uniformly in all 50 states. Because truck drivers operate across state lines, when even one state cuts corners, the consequences are felt nationwide.
“We call on California authorities to work with the U.S. Department of Transportation to expedite this process to ensure only qualified drivers with properly-issued CDLs are permitted to operate."
Todd Spencer, President, Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association said, “The days of exploiting cheap labor on the basis of false ‘driver shortage’ claims are over. OOIDA and truckers across America support the Trump Administration’s actions to crack down on the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs. For too long, loopholes in this program have allowed unqualified drivers onto our highways, putting professional truckers and the motoring public at risk. Secretary Duffy and FMCSA Administrator Barrs are embracing policies that prioritize the needs of professional truckers and roadway safety.”
