The federal government has paused the issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers. The announcement, made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on social media, comes on the heels of the Department of Transportation’s release of preliminary findings related to the multi-fatality crash involving a truck driver who had entered the U.S. illegally by crossing the border with Mexico in 2018.

During a follow-up interview after the crash, investigators found the driver could not pass the English-language proficiency (ELP) assessment, could only answer two questions correctly, and failed to properly identify traffic signs.

“The increasing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailer trucks on U.S. roads is endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers,” Rubio said in his post on X.

Background: Fatal Accident Claimed 3 Lives

When a tractor-trailer driver made what the Florida Highway Patrol deemed to be an illegal U-turn Aug. 13 on the Florida Turnpike in St. Lucie County, the resulting collision when a minivan struck the trailer blocking traffic killed three of the van’s occupants. 

The highway patrol, in a statement, said, “It is evident that the driver of the commercial semi-truck recklessly, and without regard for the safety of others, attempted to execute a U-turn utilizing an unauthorized location.”

“The actions taken by the defendant while operating a commercial tractor-trailer are both shocking and criminal”, Dave Kerner, director of Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, said in the statement. “Three people lost their lives as a result of his recklessness, and countless friends and family members will experience the pain of their loss forever.”

State troopers arrested the truck driver, Harjinder Singh, on three counts of vehicular homicide, and during the investigation learned that he entered the U.S. illegally by crossing the border with Mexico in 2018.

The investigation, as reported by the Florida Highway Patrol, revealed that Singh had been issued a commercial driver’s license (CDL) in California.

FMCSA Preliminary Investigation Results

The FMCSA launched an investigation into both the driver involved in the crash, Singh, and the motor carrier, White Hawk Carriers, Inc.

English Language Proficiency Requirement

The FMCSA reported that the driver did not speak English when he was interviewed by investigators. In June, U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Sean P. Duffy signed an order announcing new guidelines to strengthen English language enforcement for commercial truck drivers. 

Under the new guidance, drivers who fail to comply with FMCSA’ English-language proficiency (ELP) requirements would be placed out of service. FMCSA regulations already mandate that a driver who is unable to pass the assessment is not qualified to operate a commercial motor vehicle. 

However, that was not enforced for more than eight years, according to a DOT press release issued earlier this year. That DOT statement said in 2016, President Barack Obama’s administration directed inspectors not to place CMV drivers out of service for such violations. 

DOT said when FMCSA investigators administered an ELP assessment to Singh, he only provided two correct responses to 12 verbal questions. Investigators also reported he could only accurately identify one of four highway traffic signs.

Washington and New Mexico CDL Issuances

The FMCSA investigation also revealed Singh obtained a commercial driver’s license not only in California, but also in the state of Washington.

On July 15th, 2023, Washington issued Singh a regular full-term CDL. However, according to the FMCSA and DOT, asylum seekers or individuals without legal status are not eligible for this type of license.

On July 23, 2024, California issued the driver a limited-term/non-domiciled CDL. The DOT statement said FMCSA is investigating the issuance of this license to determine whether it was issued in accordance with Federal regulations.

“If states had followed the rules, this driver would never have been behind the wheel, and three precious lives would still be with us. This crash was a preventable tragedy directly caused by reckless decisions and compounded by despicable failures. Non-enforcement and radical immigration policies have turned the trucking industry into a lawless frontier, resulting in unqualified foreign drivers improperly acquiring licenses to operate 40-ton vehicles,” said Duffy.

Florida Attorney James Uthmeier sent an official letter to Duffy, the DOT, and FMCSA, asking the federal government to revoke CDL program authority and strip related federal funding from California and Washington.

“States like California and Washington ignored the rules, gave an illegal alien a license to drive a 40-ton truck, and three people are dead as a result. A preventable tragedy due to sanctuary state policies,” he said in the letter.

New Mexico Roadside Inspection

Just weeks ahead of the fatal crash, on July 3, the New Mexico State Police conducted a roadside inspection of the driver and issued a speeding ticket. 

According to FMCSA, there is no indication that an ELP assessment was administered. The investigation also found that New Mexico, at that point, had not started placing drivers who fail an ELP assessment out of service. The mandate to start enforcing non-ELP compliance was June 25.

American Trucking Associations’ Reaction

Following the announcement of the pausing of worker visas for commercial truck drivers, American Trucking Associations President and CEP Chris Spear offered support to the effort.

“ATA supports pausing work visas for commercial drivers and believes the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs needs serious scrutiny, including the enforcement of entry-level driver training standards. At a minimum, we need better accounting of how many non-domiciled CDLs are being issued, which is why we applaud Transportation Secretary Duffy for launching a nationwide audit in June upon our request,” Spear said in a statement. “We also believe a surge in enforcement of key regulations -- including motor carrier compliance -- is necessary to prevent bad actors from operating on our nation's highways, and we'll continue to partner with federal and state authorities to identify where those gaps in enforcement exist.”