Highways and Transit Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer announced on Mar. 16 the release of Dalilah’s Law, a bill aimed at strengthening Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) requirements in the United States. The legislation seeks to ensure that commercial motor vehicle drivers are properly trained, meet safety standards, and can read and understand English. It also aims to prevent unqualified and illegal immigrants from obtaining CDLs due to lax enforcement by states.
The bill is named after Dalilah Coleman, a five-year-old girl who was severely injured when she was struck by a semi-truck driven by an illegal immigrant. Her story was highlighted during this year’s State of the Union address, where President Trump called for legislative action to block illegal and unqualified immigrants from receiving CDLs.
“Commercial driver’s license standards are in place for a reason: to ensure that only those qualified to drive a truck are allowed to do so. Dalilah’s story is the heartbreaking consequence of what happens when those standards are both insufficient and breached,” said Highways and Transit Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (R-NC), the lead sponsor of the legislation. “Unqualified, illegal foreign drivers behind the wheel of an 80-ton rig put the public in danger. President Trump called on Congress to end this systematic abuse, and Dalilah’s Law answers the call. I look forward to working with Secretary Duffy and Chairman Graves to get this bill to the President’s desk to prevent tragedies like Dalilah’s from happening again.”
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO) said, “Let me be clear – this is a safety issue. If you can’t speak and read English, or if you’re not properly trained to drive a semi down our highways, you’ve got no business holding a CDL in the United States. Furthermore, we need to strengthen the laws related to issuing CDLs and ensure that states are following and enforcing those laws and requirements.” He added that Dalilah's Law supports efforts by the Trump Administration "to make our roads safer" and commended Rouzer for his leadership.
Originally introduced as H.R. 5688—the Non-Domiciled CDL Integrity Act—on October 3, 2025, by Rouzer, the bill targets issues such as English proficiency among drivers, knowledge of road rules, safety skills for operating commercial vehicles, banning foreign dispatch services linked with freight fraud, cracking down on inadequate training programs known as “CDL mills,” increasing penalties for non-compliant states through withholding federal funds, placing out-of-service orders on drivers who fail requirements, and requiring verification that CDLs are not issued to illegal immigrants.
The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will consider Dalilah's Law during its markup session scheduled for March 18 at 10:00 a.m., with a live webcast available.
