The Department of Transportation alerted Pennsylvania on Thursday about the potential loss of millions in federal funding, as stated in a press release sourced by Blaze News.
The DOT reached out to Governor Josh Shapiro and the state’s Transportation Secretary, Michael Carroll, indicating that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found “evidence of procedural and programming errors” regarding the issuance of nonresident commercial learner permits and driver’s licenses.
In the letter, the department noted that Pennsylvania has given out CDLs with expiration periods extending beyond the legal residency of the individuals. Furthermore, the state allegedly issued licenses without adequately confirming that applicants were legally present in the United States. There were also reports of issuing other non-domicile CDLs to lawful permanent residents who qualify for standard CDLs.
Among the 150 records reviewed by FMCSA, there were two cases where non-domicile CDLs were issued incorrectly. Additionally, there were four instances where the Department didn’t sufficiently prove that it required drivers to show legal residency documentation. Finally, there were two cases of CDLs being issued without addresses to people eligible for regular CDLs.
Currently, around 12,400 drivers possess valid Pennsylvania-issued non-domicile CLPs or CDLs.
The federal agency demanded that Pennsylvania implement “immediate corrective action” to avoid having its CDL program decertified and facing a loss of federally-aided highway funds. This includes halting the issuance of all non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs right away and conducting an internal audit to pinpoint procedural errors. Pennsylvania is also obliged to identify and revoke all improperly issued, unexpired, and non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs.
Should Pennsylvania fail to act, the DOT could withhold $75.5 million in funding for the fiscal year 2027.
This warning is part of the DOT’s ongoing efforts to address traffic safety and national security issues related to illegal immigrants in the trucking sector, particularly during the Biden administration’s open border situation. Similar actions have already been taken against California for infractions of this nature.
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy emphasized, “Under President Trump, our department is taking every step to prevent dangerous foreign drivers from illegally operating 40-ton vehicles on American roads. Joe Biden has allowed tens of millions of illegal immigrants to flow into our country through our open borders, including terrorist suspects whom Pennsylvania has allowed behind the wheel of semi-trucks. I will continue to fight to remove these dangerous drivers from our roads to protect American families and support our national security.”
Duffy’s comments possibly refer to Akhror Bozorov, a 31-year-old truck driver from Uzbekistan, who was recently apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agency suspects he has ties to a terrorist organization and had been issued a non-domiciled CDL with a REAL ID by Pennsylvania.
