The United States Department of Homeland Security announced on July 16 a partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation aimed at addressing fraudulent and illegal practices in commercial driver’s license schools.
Homeland Security Investigations will work with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to identify and address fraud involving the issuance of non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses to illegal aliens. The agencies, along with state and local partners, plan to focus on preserving the integrity of the CDL system by maintaining high standards in training and preventing fraud, ensuring that only qualified individuals operate commercial vehicles.
“Too many American lives have been lost in completely avoidable accidents because illegal aliens have been granted commercial driver’s licenses to drive trucks and 18-wheelers on America’s roadways,” said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “DHS law enforcement is partnering with the Department of Transportation to eliminate CDL fraud, strengthen the integrity of the CDL system, and investigate commercial driver’s license schools throughout the country. This is a whole-of-government approach, to keep America’s roads safe.”
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said, “USDOT has spent the last year rooting out bad actors from our trucking industry. We’ve knocked over 24,000 drivers off our roads for failing to speak English, forced states to cancel over 28,000 licenses illegally issued to foreign drivers, and purged over 9,500 unqualified training schools from our FMCSA registry. DHS will be a force multiplier of our efforts to clean up America’s roads. President Trump is using every lever at his disposal to ensure the safety of American families.”
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has identified approximately 75 entry-level driving training schools suspected of fraudulent activities such as improper certifications and falsifying records. The Department of Transportation will involve Homeland Security Investigations in ongoing investigations into these institutions.