A payment offered in exchange for a passing score on a CDL skills test has an Idaho man facing prison time.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Idaho, said Ryan Basnaw, 29, of Meridian, Idaho, has pleaded guilty to federal program bribery.
According to court documents, Basnaw offered and agreed to pay a CDL skills tester $500 in cash for a passing score on the CDL skills test without taking the test in July 2025.
“Basnaw did so corruptly and with the intent to influence and reward the CDL skills test, so that Basnaw could have three restrictions removed from his CDL without taking the required CDL test,” a U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Idaho news release said.
To obtain a CDL in Idaho, applicants must receive a passing score on a CDL skills test administered by a CDL skills test examiner, among other requirements.
The Idaho Transportation Department contracts with third-party CDL skills test examiners to administer skills tests.
In 2025, the Idaho Department of Motor Vehicles received more than $10,000 in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation through a CDL program implementation grant, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office news release.
Basnaw is scheduled to be sentenced on June 16. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a minimum of 3 years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
Strengthening CDL requirements
In February, the U.S. DOT outlined its plans to clean up the trucking industry, including evaluating the CDL examination process.
OOIDA and ATA recently addressed lawmakers on the matter, requesting stronger preventive measures.
“Congress and regulators must do more to prevent unsafe motor carriers from joining the trucking industry in the first place,” the letter to the House Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development said. “This will require addressing the resource gap that has left FMCSA’s New Entrant Safety Assurance Program unable to keep pace with the volume of new carriers entering the freight market.”
The trucking groups agree that Congress needs to prioritize investments to enable FMCSA to modernize and expand the new entrant program. LL
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