Transportation Department threatens $73M for New York's highways over commercial driver's licenses [View all]

Last edited Sat Dec 13, 2025, 04:03 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: The Hill

12/12/25 3:19 PM ET


ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — The federal government ordered New York to stop granting trucking licenses to foreign drivers or lose millions of dollars in highway aid. Transportation officials said their review found that the state is likelier to break the law than to follow it when issuing “non-domiciled” commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs).

Non-domiciled CDLs are special permits for those who live in other countries or have temporary legal status in the U.S. and drive large trucks for work within New York.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the enforcement action during a press conference in Washington, D.C. on Friday. He said that the state didn’t do enough verification before issuing licenses to foreigners.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said they checked 200 records from New York’s Department of Motor Vehicles, finding that the state issued 107 CDLs that violated U.S. law. That 53 percent error rate could be worth $73 million in revoked federal funding. “When more than half of the licenses reviewed were issued illegally, it isn’t just a mistake — it is a dereliction of duty by state leadership,” Duffy said. “If they refuse to follow the law, we will withhold federal highway funding.”

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/transportation/5646756-transportation-department-duffy-new-york-cdls-truck-drivers/