The Trump administration announced on Wednesday (December 10) that they have ordered over 9,500 commercial truck drivers to stop providing driving services on U.S. highways due to deficient English language skills.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated in a Facebook post, “We have now suspended 9,500 truck drivers from service because they do not speak our official language – English!”
He emphasized, “This administration will always prioritize the safety of you and your family.”
Federal law requires commercial truck drivers to have a certain level of English proficiency to ensure they can communicate effectively and understand road signs. However, since the Obama administration, drivers who violated this requirement usually only received warnings.
President Trump signed an executive order in March designating English as the official language of the United States, and in April instructed Duffy to immediately “suspend service” for commercial truck drivers who did not meet the English language standards. This enforcement policy came into effect in late June.
Duffy stressed that, “Federal law is clear that drivers who cannot read or speak English adequately to understand road signs are not qualified to operate commercial motor vehicles in the United States.”
The Trump administration has linked the surge in illegal immigrants during the Biden administration with road safety issues.
In August, immigrant truck driver Harjinder Singh was involved in an incident in Florida where he made an illegal U-turn on a toll highway, causing a small truck to collide with a trailer, resulting in three fatalities. The Department of Homeland Security stated that Singh obtained a commercial driver’s license in California after entering the country illegally. This accident immediately sparked concerns.
The Department of Transportation issued emergency regulations restricting the issuance of commercial driver’s licenses to non-U.S. citizens, prohibiting asylum seekers, DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) beneficiaries, and refugees from renewing or upgrading their licenses.
At the same time, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a temporary halt to issuing work visas to foreign truck drivers, warning that the increasing numbers of foreign drivers were “endangering American lives” and harming the livelihoods of American truck drivers.
Industry executives estimate that in the coming years, as many as 400,000 drivers (about 11% of the total) may leave the industry due to these enforcement actions.
The Department of Transportation has announced that California will have over $40 million in funds withheld for not meeting English proficiency standards. The state has started revoking 17,000 licenses that were issued.
Among the over 9,500 drivers removed from the roads, the highest number was from Texas and Wyoming. Observers in the industry note that after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdowns, trucking rates in specific regions may increase due to a decrease in driver supply.
Vadym Shpak, owner of a trucking company in Illinois, told Bloomberg that his East European employees are refusing to travel to southern states out of fear of being targeted. He has to cover the costs of rental cars and flights for drivers who are pulled over and “suspended” on the road, while insurance premiums are also rising.