The Trump Administration has threatened to pull federal funding from the state of Minnesota, alleging it has illegally issued non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs).
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced one-third of non-domiciled CDLs issued by the state were done so illegally. The DOT is giving the state 30 days to come into compliance and revoke those licenses, or risk losing up to $30.4 million in federal funding.
“Our audit exposes yet another example of foreigners taking advantage of Minnesota services under Governor Walz’s watch,” Duffy said in a release. “Minnesota failed to follow the law and illegally doled out trucking licenses to unsafe, unqualified non-citizens – endangering American families on the road. That abuse stops now under the Trump Administration. The Department will withhold funding if Minnesota continues this reckless behavior that puts non-citizens gaming the system ahead of the safety of Americans.”
The DOT said an audit discovered: drivers whose CDLs were valid after their lawful presence in the United States expired; drivers who were prohibited from holding a non-domiciled CDL; drivers who had not been verified by Minnesota to be lawfully present in the United States.
It is ordering the state to: pause the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs; identify all unexpired non-domiciled CDLs that don’t comply with FMCSA regulations; revoke and reissue all noncompliant CDLs if they comply with federal requirements; and conduct a comprehensive internal audit to identify all procedural and programming efforts, training and quality assurance problems, insufficient policies and practices, and other issues that have resulted in the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs that did not comply with federal rules.
“Minnesota is openly and blatantly defying our rules, plain and simple,” said FMCSA Administrator Derek D. Barrs. “Under the Trump Administration, states have two choices: meet our standards or face the consequences. Following the law is not optional.”
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