Sean Duffy Withholds Millions in DOT Funds from California After State Refuses to Stop Licensing Truckers Who Can’t Read English
The U.S. Department of Transportation, thru Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, announced that California will lose over $40 million in federal funding from the Motor Carrier safety Assistance program (MCSAP) because the state does not comply with federal English language proficiency standards for commercial truck drivers. The funds support safety activities like roadside inspections and enforcement. California is uniquely refusing to enforce a rule requiring truck drivers to read, speak, and understand English sufficiently to ensure safety on the roads.
Secretary Duffy emphasized that this is a critical safety measure and criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom for obstructing federal law, wich prevents the distribution of these funds. The issue gained attention after a California-licensed truck driver who failed an English test was involved in a fatal accident. The Department of Homeland Security also highlighted concerns about illegal immigrants obtaining commercial licenses under false names, posing safety risks.
California officials defended their record, noting the state’s truck driver crash rates are below the national average and criticized Duffy’s stance. The controversy follows a Trump administration executive order mandating English proficiency for commercial drivers to improve highway safety nationwide.
California will lose millions in federal money because it will not comply with the federal Department of Transportation’s English Language Proficiency standards, according to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration funding totaling $40,685,225 through the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program will be lost, according to a Department of Transportation news release.
“I put states on notice this summer: enforce the Trump Administration’s English language requirements or the checks stop coming. California is the only state in the nation that refuses to ensure big rig drivers can read our road signs and communicate with law enforcement. This is a fundamental safety issue that impacts you and your family on America’s [roads],” Duffy said.
“Let me be clear — this is valuable money that should be going to the great men and women in California law enforcement, who we support. Gov. Newsom’s insistence on obstructing federal law has tied my hands,” he said.
MCSAP grants fund roadside inspections, traffic enforcement, safety audits of trucking companies, and public education.
This isn’t rocket science.
The foreign truck driver who made an illegal U-turn and killed 3 people in Florida earlier this year got his trucking license in California.
After the accident, he FAILED an English proficiency test.
This Administration cares about Americans being… pic.twitter.com/o3brNFgwzo
— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) October 16, 2025
The release said to have the funding restored, California must enforce federal rules, including a section saying commercial drivers “Can read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs and signals in the English language, to respond to official inquiries, and to make entries on reports and records.”
The release noted that it has audited how states grant commercial driver’s licenses.
Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a representative of California’s Democratic governor, said Duffy “needs a lesson on his own road rules,” according to The Hill.
Crofts-Pelayo said commercial truck drivers in California have crash rates below the national average.
In April, President Donald Trump issued an executive order requiring commercial truck drivers be proficient in English.
The order emerged in the national spotlight recently after California-based commercial truck driver Vivak Sharma bemoaned to KGO-TV that he could not get his license renewed due to Trump’s edict.
Sharma cannot speak English after 10 years in the country, eight spent driving trucks.
Duffy was not sympathetic.
“Crocodile tears for a man who has spent a decade in our country but couldn’t be bothered to learn our language. Our new rules will keep you and your family SAFE on America’s roads!” he posted on X.
The crackdown comes as the Department of Homeland Security revealed some illegal immigrants who drive tractor-trailers do work with licenses issued to “No name given.”
A DHS news release noted that on Sept. 23, an illegal immigrant whose New York State driver’s license was issued to “No name given Anmol” was arrested for being in the country illegally. He had initially been detained by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
“Allowing illegal aliens to obtain commercial driver’s licenses to operate 18-wheelers and transport hazardous materials on America’s roads is reckless and incredibly dangerous to public safety. Thanks to the successful 287g partnership of ICE and Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Anmol Anmol is no longer posing a threat to drivers,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.
“New York is not only failing to check if applicants applying to drive 18-wheelers are U.S. citizens but even failing to obtain the full legal names of individuals they are issuing commercial drivers’ licenses to. DHS is working with our state and local partners to get illegal alien truck drivers who often don’t know basic traffic laws off our highways,” she said.
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