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The US Department of Transportation said on Wednesday it is withholding $160 million in federal funds from the state of California for failing to cancel over 17,o000 improperly issued commercial driver’s licences held by non-US citizens.
Reuters reports that the department first warned in September that it could take action. The department said California had failed to revoke the licences by the agreed-upon deadline of January 5.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles is fully in compliance with state and federal regulations, a spokesperson said. The agency strongly disagrees “with the federal government’s decision to withhold vital transportation funding from California – their action jeopardizes public safety because these funds are critical for maintaining and improving the roadways we all rely on every day,” the spokesperson said.
The agency added that it had engaged in positive conversations about extending the January 5 cancellation date to allow additional time for the federal government to review the department’s commercial driver’s licence program.
The department said that an audit showed that more than 25% of commercial truck driver licences issued to non-US residents by California were unlawful.
In September, the USDOT issued emergency rules to drastically restrict commercial driver licences to non-US citizens after a fatal crash in Florida. President Donald Trump has regularly threatened funding for large cities run by Democrats, including for major infrastructure projects in Chicago and New York, and over commercial driver licences issued to non-US residents by Minnesota, New York and California. The Motor Carrier Safety Administration said in 2023 that about 16% of US truck drivers were born outside the United States.
