In a recent report, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy has accused California of breaching federal laws by allowing a foreign driver to operate a truck, leading to the deaths of three people and the hospitalization of two others. The Department of Transportation has informed California of "significant compliance failures" following an audit that showed improper issuance of one in four non-domiciled Commercial Driver's Licenses (CDLs) sampled.
California is now required to halt the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs, identify all unexpired licenses that do not comply with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulations, and revoke or reissue them according to new federal standards. Secretary Duffy said, "My prayers are with the families of the victims of this tragedy. It would have never happened if Gavin Newsom had followed our new rules. California broke the law and now three people are dead and two are hospitalized. These people deserve justice. There will be consequences."
The report highlights that on June 27, 2025, Jashanpreet Singh, a 20-year-old asylum seeker, was issued a restricted CDL by California with a "K restriction," limiting him to intrastate operations. However, after turning 21 on October 15, 2025, Singh's driving privileges were upgraded without applying stricter standards mandated by an emergency rule from FMCSA issued on September 26, 2025.
This emergency rule aimed to tighten standards for issuing non-domiciled CDLs by requiring non-citizens to meet stricter criteria including holding an employment-based visa and passing a federal immigration status check using the SAVE system. On October 21, Singh was involved in a fatal accident while under the influence of drugs.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has also been active in other areas recently. It announced $19.6 million in grants to small shipyards across various states for modernization and job expansion efforts (https://www.maritime.dot.gov/newsroom/maritime-administration-awards-nearly-20-million-funding-strengthen-us-shipyard-economic). Additionally, it launched a $7.3 billion program under President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help communities prepare for extreme weather events (https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/biden-administration-announces-new-protect-formula-program-73-billion-bipartisan).
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