Federal transportation officials move to close screening gaps that allowed certain foreign nationals to obtain commercial driver’s licenses without full safety record verification.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The Trump administration on Wednesday finalized new regulations aimed at preventing foreign nationals without verified driving histories from obtaining commercial driver’s licenses, citing what officials described as a regulatory gap that limited access to certain background information during the licensing process.
According to a Daily Caller News Foundation report, the Department of Transportation will formally issue a rule intended to eliminate what it characterizes as a loophole that allowed some foreign applicants to obtain CDLs without full access to prior driving violation records. The change represents the latest enforcement step targeting commercial driver eligibility standards.
“For far too long, America has allowed dangerous foreign drivers to abuse our truck licensing systems – wreaking havoc on our roadways,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement obtained by the DCNF. “Moving forward, unqualified foreign drivers will be unable to get a license to operate an 80,000-pound big rig.”
“Under President Trump’s leadership, we are putting the safety of the driving public first,” Duffy continued. “From enforcing English language standards to holding fraudulent carriers accountable, we will continue to attack this crisis on our roads head on.”
According to the department, American citizens applying for CDLs must undergo screening through national safety databases that flag prior violations such as DUI offenses or crash histories. However, state licensing agencies have not had access to equivalent foreign driving records for certain non-citizen applicants.
Transportation officials said some foreign nationals were able to present an Employment Authorization Document as proof of eligibility despite that document not containing transportation safety history. The new rule prohibits the use of EADs as standalone proof of eligibility and requires verification of lawful immigration status through the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements system.
Under the updated standards, eligibility for commercial licenses will be limited to individuals holding H-2A, H-2B, or E-2 nonimmigrant status. State officials will be required to confirm each applicant’s lawful status before issuing a CDL.
The regulatory change follows action taken by DOT in September that restricted certain foreign nationals from obtaining commercial licenses. Officials have said the expanded measures respond to a series of fatal highway crashes allegedly involving non-citizen truck drivers.
In recent months, Harjinder Singh, Jashanpreet Singh, Rajinder Kumar and Kamalpreet Singh were accused of causing fatal crashes after obtaining non-domiciled CDLs in California. All four individuals are described as illegal migrants from India.
In another case, a crash that killed four people earlier in February was allegedly caused by a Kyrgyzstan national who had obtained a CDL in Pennsylvania.
Federal Motor Carrier Administrator Derek Barrs said the new rule addresses deficiencies in prior screening processes.
“A critical safety gap allowed unqualified drivers with unknown driving histories to get behind the wheel of commercial vehicles,” Barrs said in a statement obtained by the DCNF. “We are closing that gap today to ensure that only qualified, vetted drivers are operating on our nation’s roadways.”
The department said the rule will take effect following standard regulatory procedures.
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