Feds Say 54% Of Immigrant Truck Driver Licenses In Nc Are Illegal

The Trump administration’s crackdown on foreign commercial drivers is now reaching far beyond California’s borders. US Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced that more than half of North Carolina’s commercial truck licenses issued to immigrant drivers were unlawfully granted, triggering a federal threat to pull millions in funding unless the state takes immediate corrective action.

Read: California Flips On Immigrant Truckers, And Now Washington Wants Payback

Following a national audit of state truck licensing systems, the transportation department has already cracked down on several states — threatening to withhold millions in federal funds from California, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and New York.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) reports that 54 percent of the non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) reviewed in North Carolina were issued in violation of federal rules.

A federal audit revealed that many of these licenses carried expiration dates extending well past the driver’s documented legal presence in the US, mirroring a problem previously uncovered in California that affected thousands of immigrant truckers.

A Deepening Licensing Dispute

In addition, many licenses are claimed to have been issued to drivers ineligible to hold a non-domiciled commercial driver’s license, although the government hasn’t explained exactly why and how this happened. CDLs have also been issued to drivers before North Carolina verified if the individual is lawfully allowed in the US.

The federal government is now threatening to withhold $50 million in funding unless the state halts all new non-domiciled CDL issuances and performs a full compliance review. That includes identifying every active license that fails to meet FMCSA standards.

FMCSA Administrator Derek D. Barrs described the level of noncompliance as “egregious.”

“Under Secretary Duffy, we will not hesitate to hold states accountable and protect the American people,” Barrs said.

Revocations, Audits, and Federal Pressure

Officials have also directed North Carolina to revoke and reissue all non-compliant licenses for immigrant drivers who do meet federal criteria. In parallel, the state must conduct a full internal audit to identify the procedural or system-level failures that led to the current situation.

“North Carolina’s failure to follow the rules isn’t just shameful – it’s dangerous,” Duffy explained. “I’m calling on state leadership to immediately remove these dangerous drivers from our roads and clean up their system. President Trump and I are committed to keeping you and your family safe on our roads.” 

As we’ve come to expect, there’s quite a lot of fear-mongering in that statement, as obviously not all the drivers in question can be “dangerous.”

These actions follow a wider federal audit of state truck licensing systems, with the Department of Transportation already threatening to withhold millions in funding from California, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and New York.