a “perfect storm” of federal policies, including the 2016 Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration memorandum that told states not to place non-English-proficient drivers out of service, as well as the White House’s claim in 2021–2022 of creating more than 870,000 new CDL holders — without explaining who those drivers were.
FMCSA state-level data shows “huge, inexplicable waves” of CDL issuances in a dozen states from 2021–2024.
“The federal government’s own website showed almost half a million new drivers added during what’s supposed to be a recession,” Bates said. “It didn’t make sense — until you look at non-domiciled CDLs.”
A recent Department of Transportation audit revealed at least 200,000 such licenses have been issued nationwide. The proliferation of non-domiciled CDLs has coincided with an increase in trucking capacity across the U.S. Since the FMCSA permitted foreigners to obtain non-domiciled CDLs in March 2019, the industry has added more than 310,000 trucks to roads across the country.
The result: suppressed freight rates, rising insurance costs, and a “race to the bottom” that Maher says has crushed small trucking businesses since the post-COVID downturn.
in recent months, when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and state police in Oklahoma, Indiana, Texas and Wyoming began to run multi-day roadside operations targeting CDL irregularities.
The results were consistent: between 20% and 30% of trucks pulled over were operated by drivers with fraudulent or non-domiciled CDLs, expired visas, or no license at all.
The results were consistent: between 20% and 30% of trucks pulled over were operated by drivers with fraudulent or non-domiciled CDLs, expired visas, or no license at all.
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