Category: Department of transportation
‘Slow-walking’ safety? Trump DOT threatens to yank $24M over Colorado’s illegal CDL mess.
The Department of Transportation warned Colorado that the state could lose $24 million in federal highway funding if it continues to drag its feet on addressing illegally issued commercial driver’s licenses, according to a press release exclusively obtained by Blaze News.
‘Colorado has two options: Revoke the licenses immediately, or I will pull federal funding.’
In September, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy shared the results of a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration audit, which found “systemic noncompliance” among state driver licensing agencies in several states, including Colorado.
The audit revealed that 22% of Colorado’s non-domiciled CDLs were issued illegally. Most of those licenses were reportedly issued to Mexican nationals. Drivers who are citizens of Mexico or Canada are ineligible to obtain non-domiciled CDLs and must instead acquire licenses from their home countries.
Some of the CDLs issued to immigrants by Colorado reportedly had expiration dates that exceeded the drivers’ lawful presence in the U.S.
The DOT demanded that the state immediately pull the illegal licenses to come into compliance with federal laws.
A Monday press release from the department claimed that Colorado had “admitted that these violations were not accidental, but the result of a 2016 statewide policy decision to disregard federal law and give trucking licenses to ineligible Mexican citizens.”
Blaze News reached out to the Colorado Department of Transportation, the Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles, and the governor’s office for comment. The Colorado DOT directed Blaze News to contact the state’s Department of Revenue, which oversees the Division of Motor Vehicles.
RELATED: Exclusive: DOT withholds $40M from blue state for flouting English requirements for truckers
Sean Duffy. Photographer: Ryan Collerd/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The DOT asserted that the state has been “slow-walking a purge of illegally issued truck licenses,” cautioning that Colorado could lose $24 million in federal highway funds. The DOT also warned that it could decertify Colorado’s CDL program.
According to the department, Colorado has not produced a complete audit or accounting of the illegal licenses.
“This continued delay signals a lack of urgency that puts public safety at risk,” the press release read.
RELATED: Trump’s DOT claims 53% of New York’s non-domiciled CDLs were issued illegally
Photo by GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images
“Colorado doesn’t get to pick and choose what federal rules it follows — especially when the driving public is at risk,” Secretary Duffy stated. “It’s been nearly two months since Colorado admitted that they knowingly broke the law and gave Mexican nationals trucking licenses. Colorado has two options: Revoke the licenses immediately, or I will pull federal funding. Every day that goes by is another day unqualified, unvetted foreign truckers are jeopardizing the safety of you and your family.”
Colorado received notice of its noncompliance in September, the same time the DOT also issued a similar notice to Texas. On September 29, the Texas Department of Public Safety announced that it had complied with the DOT’s request and immediately suspended the issuance of certain CDLs.
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Trump’s DOT claims 53% of New York’s non-domiciled CDLs were issued illegally
President Donald Trump’s Department of Transportation announced new action against another Democratic-led state that it claims has been illegally issuing non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses.
On Friday morning, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy revealed that an audit from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found that over half of New York state’s non-domiciled CDLs were issued illegally. The audit sampled 200 records and discovered that 107, or 53%, were issued in violation of federal law.
‘What we uncovered in New York is not an administrative oversight.’
There are reportedly 32,000 active non-domiciled CDLs that were issued by New York.
According to the DOT, the New York Department of Motor Vehicles defaulted to issuing eight-year licenses to foreign drivers who applied for non-REAL ID licenses, regardless of when their legal status expired.
“This systemic failure allows the state to blindly grant long-term commercial driving privileges to foreigners that expire long after the expiration of their lawful presence in the country,” the DOT stated.
Additionally, the department claimed that New York failed to provide any evidence that it had verified the lawful presence of foreign individuals before issuing them commercial driver’s licenses. In some instances, New York allegedly relied on expired lawful presence documents to issue licenses.
Sean Duffy. Photo by Eric Lee/Getty Images
As a result of the concerning findings, the DOT has demanded that New York immediately pause the issuance of new or renewed non-domiciled CDLs and commercial learner’s permits.
The state has also been asked to conduct an internal audit to identify licenses that were issued in violation of federal regulations. The DOT warned that the state risks losing $73 million in federal highway funding if it fails to revoke all illegally issued licenses held by foreign drivers immediately.
“When more than half of the licenses reviewed were issued illegally, it isn’t just a mistake — it is a dereliction of duty by state leadership. Gov. [Kathy] Hochul must immediately revoke these illegally issued licenses. If they refuse to follow the law, we will withhold federal highway funding,” Duffy stated. “This administration will never stop fighting to keep you and your family safe on our roads.”
Photo by GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images
During a Friday morning press conference announcing the findings, Duffy explained that states that illegally issue CDLs endanger American drivers nationwide, since the licenses allow interstate operations.
Duffy described New York as the worst offender for issuing licenses in violation of federal law. The DOT has given New York 30 days to come into compliance.
California and New York account for half of the non-domiciled CDLs issued in the nation, Duffy stated.
“What we uncovered in New York is not an administrative oversight,” FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs stated during the press conference. “It’s a systematically, grossly unacceptable deviation from a federal safety regulation that has been on the books for a long period of time.”
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‘Make travel family friendly again’: Trump admin launches $1B effort to improve airport experience
The Trump administration’s Departments of Transportation and Health and Human Services are teaming up to launch a new effort to “make travel family friendly again” by providing more family-friendly resources and healthier food options at America’s airports.
On Monday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. held a press conference at Reagan National Airport to announce a new family-friendly travel campaign that will allocate $1 billion in grant funding to airports to improve the travel experience.
‘I can tell you that this is where healthy diets go to die.’
Duffy provided a few examples of how the funds could be used, such as play areas for children, nursing pods for breastfeeding mothers, workout spaces, and separate security lanes for families. He noted that the funds could be used for a range of investments and that the department was open to other improvement suggestions.
“It’s pretty wide open on what airports want to ask for a grant,” Duffy stated.
He stated that he has also reached out to the airlines to encourage them to consider how they could improve the travel experience.
As part of the new campaign, Duffy and Kennedy are advocating for healthy food options at the nation’s airports.
Sean Duffy. Photo by Eric Lee/Getty Images
“I … typically over the past 30 years, probably average 250 days a year in airports. And I can tell you that this is where healthy diets go to die,” Kennedy said. “It’s deep-fried food; it’s sugar bombs; it’s ultra-processed foods. And all of them are gonna leave you sicker than before you ate them.”
During Monday’s press conference, Duffy and Kennedy highlighted Farmer’s Fridge, a company that operates vending machines offering salads, sandwiches, bowls, and oats. Luke Saunders, the CEO of Farmer’s Fridge, who also attended the press conference, explained that he founded the company 12 years ago and that it now operates vending machines in over 30 U.S. airports.
“If you want to reach out to your airport authority and encourage them to participate in this money, please do that,” Duffy said.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images
Duffy noted that last week the department hired an integrator who will help convert the nation’s air travel technology from analog to digital.
In November, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stated that the Transportation Security Administration would roll out new security screening lanes at select airports for families with small children, as well as for veterans and active-duty military.
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Keep On Truckin’ — If You Are Rightly Licensed
WASHINGTON — What happens when rules designed to ensure public safety fray so much that undocumented residents can obtain commercial…
Illegal drivers, dead Americans — this is what ‘open borders’ really mean
Wherever you’re reading this, your day almost certainly began on an American road. You might have driven your kids to day care, headed to work, or grabbed a coffee. Even cyclists rely on the same system. Those routines rest on one basic assumption: The people operating massive commercial vehicles are trained, vetted, and accountable.
The assumption is disintegrating because the country is still digging out from the chaos of the Biden administration’s border collapse. President Trump is trying to put the pieces back together, but the wreckage didn’t disappear overnight — and we see the consequences on our highways.
America’s highways shouldn’t become another casualty of Washington’s failures. Neither should American workers.
A recent tragedy in Florida makes the point. A 28-year-old man from India made an illegal U-turn on the turnpike and allegedly killed three people. He reportedly entered the United States illegally and still obtained a commercial driver’s license. In California, a 21-year-old — also allegedly in the country illegally — slammed his semi into stopped traffic on Interstate 10, killing three more. Authorities say he crossed the border in 2022 during the peak of the Biden administration’s open-border surge.
These cases aren’t flukes. They reflect a system that stopped taking seriously who gets behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound vehicle.
The incentives run in one direction. The trucking industry faces a driver shortage. Instead of raising wages and restoring what used to be a proud, middle-class profession, too many companies cut corners by hiring illegal labor willing to work for less. That choice endangers families on the highway and robs American truckers of the wages they earned by playing by the rules.
Every illegal driver creates two problems. First, a safety threat to everyone sharing the road. Second, downward pressure on American workers’ earnings. Flood the labor market with illegal labor, and you weaken the people who keep the country moving.
Trucking remains a central pillar of the American economy. Nearly everything in your home arrived on a truck. These jobs once supported families. They now absorb the fallout from policies that ignore the consequences of illegal hiring.
Fixing this requires basic seriousness. That means, at the very least, strict verification, no loopholes, and no more rubber-stamped licenses issued without proof of legal status. And no more pretending that illegal immigration leaves public safety and wages untouched.
Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
The country depends on trucking. The system works only when drivers are properly trained, thoroughly vetted, and in the country legally. It fails when policymakers encourage shortcuts and lower standards to satisfy an open-border ideology.
This debate isn’t abstract. It’s about safety. It’s about economic fairness. It’s about recognizing that border policy shapes everyday life — including the safety of your morning commute.
America’s highways shouldn’t become another casualty of Washington’s failures. Neither should American workers. Both deserve leaders willing to enforce the rules that keep this country safe and prosperous.
Trump DOT threatens to pull millions from Tim Walz’s state, boots 3,000 shady CDL trainers to clean up trucker licensing mess
The Trump administration’s Department of Transportation is taking significant steps to address issues within America’s trucking industry to improve road safety and national security.
On Monday, DOT Secretary Sean Duffy announced that the department has revoked nearly 3,000 of the estimated 16,000 commercial driver’s license training providers listed in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Training Provider Registry. The TPR lists all training providers authorized to offer entry-level driver training for CDL students.
‘Under Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg, bad actors were able to game the system and let unqualified drivers flood our roadways.’
The impacted training providers were accused of “failing to equip trainees with the Trump administration’s standards of readiness,” a press release from the DOT revealed.
Reasons for removal included “falsifying or manipulating training data”; “neglecting to meet required curriculum standards, facility conditions, or instructor qualifications”; and “failing to maintain accurate, complete documentation or refusing to provide records during federal audits or investigations.”
The department issued warnings to another 4,500 training providers for potential non-compliance. Those entities have 30 days to respond and deliver evidence of compliance to avoid removal.
The DOT noted that this action aims to crack down on unqualified truck drivers and “corrupt operators.”
Photo by GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images
“If you are unwilling to follow the rules, you have no place training America’s commercial drivers. We will not tolerate negligence,” said FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs.
“This administration is cracking down on every link in the illegal trucking chain,” Duffy stated. “Under Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg, bad actors were able to game the system and let unqualified drivers flood our roadways. Their negligence endangered every family on America’s roadways, and it ends today.”
“Under President Trump, we are reigning [sic] in illegal and reckless practices that let poorly trained drivers get behind the wheel of semi-trucks and school buses,” Duffy added.
Also on Monday, the DOT revealed that it found one-third of Minnesota’s non-domiciled CDLs were issued illegally.
The department is giving the state 30 days to come into compliance and revoke illegally issued licenses. The DOT is prepared to withhold up to $30.4 million in federal highway funding if Minnesota fails to comply.
RELATED: Exclusive: DOT withholds $40M from blue state for flouting English requirements for truckers
Sean Duffy. Photographer: Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Barrs accused Minnesota of “openly and blatantly defying our rules.”
“Under the Trump administration, states have two choices: Meet our standards or face the consequences. Following the law is not optional,” he declared.
“Our audit exposes yet another example of foreigners taking advantage of Minnesota services under Governor Walz’s watch,” Duffy said. “Minnesota failed to follow the law and illegally doled out trucking licenses to unsafe, unqualified noncitizens — endangering American families on the road.”
This latest warning follows similar action the DOT has previously taken against Pennsylvania. The department has already vowed to withhold federal funds from California after the state failed to comply with its regulations concerning CDL issuance.
The Minnesota Department of Public Safety and the governor’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
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America, Please Put Some Pants On
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Trump DOT hammers Gov. Shapiro, threatens to pull millions after state hands CDL to ‘suspected terrorist’ illegal alien trucker
The Department of Transportation issued a warning on Thursday to Pennsylvania that it is at risk of losing tens of millions of dollars in federal funding, according to a department press release obtained by Blaze News.
The DOT sent a letter to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) and state DOT Secretary Michael Carroll stating that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration uncovered “evidence of procedural and programming errors” in the state’s issuance of non-domiciled commercial learner’s permits and driver’s licenses.
‘Joe Biden allowed tens of millions of illegals to pour into our country through open borders, including a suspected terrorist who Pennsylvania then allowed to get behind the wheel of a semitruck.’
Pennsylvania issued CDLs with expiration dates beyond the foreign nationals’ lawful presence in the country, according to the DOT. Further, the state was accused of issuing licenses without requiring drivers to provide proof of lawful presence in the U.S. The department also stated that other non-domiciled CDLs were issued to lawful permanent residents who were eligible for regular CDLs.
Of 150 records reviewed by the FMCSA, two instances were found in which PennDOT issued non-domiciled CDLs with expiration dates that extended beyond the drivers’ lawful presence. The FMCSA uncovered four cases in which the department failed to provide evidence that it required drivers to present lawful residence documents. Lastly, the FMCSA identified two instances in which the department issued a non-domiciled CDL to individuals who were eligible for a regular CDL.
The DOT noted that 12,400 drivers hold an unexpired non-domiciled CLP or CDL issued by Pennsylvania.
The federal department demanded that Pennsylvania take “immediate corrective action” or risk the decertification of its CDL program and losing certain federal-aid highway funds. The corrective action includes an immediate pause on the issuance of all non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs, as well as an internal audit to identify procedural errors. Pennsylvania is also required to identify and void all unexpired non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs that were improperly issued.
RELATED: ICE takes down alleged ‘wanted terrorist’ illegal alien trucker
Josh Shapiro. Photo by Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images
Failure to comply may lead to the DOT withholding $75,500,000 in funding for fiscal year 2027.
Thursday’s warning is part of the DOT’s greater effort to crack down on road safety and national security concerns related to the flood of illegal aliens that joined the trucking industry amid the Biden administration’s open-border crisis. The DOT has already withheld funds from California over similar violations.
Akhror Bozorov. Image source: Department of Homeland Security
“Under President Trump, this department is taking every measure to ensure dangerous foreign drivers aren’t illegally operating 40-ton vehicles on American roads,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated. “Joe Biden allowed tens of millions of illegals to pour into our country through open borders, including a suspected terrorist who Pennsylvania then allowed to get behind the wheel of a semitruck. I will continue to fight to get these dangerous drivers off our roads to protect American families and support our national security.”
Duffy’s statement presumably referred to Akhror Bozorov, a 31-year-old truck driver from Uzbekistan who was recently arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agency stated that Bozorov was accused of belonging to a terrorist organization. He was issued a non-domiciled CDL with REAL ID by Pennsylvania.
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