Overview
- California has begun notifying roughly 17,000 commercial drivers that their licenses will expire in 60 days after a federal audit found validity dates extended beyond work authorization.
- FMCSA demanded a full review of California’s non‑domiciled CDL records, and the DOT has already withheld $40 million in highway funds with up to $160 million more threatened.
- State officials dispute federal claims, saying affected drivers had valid federal work authorization when licensed and that problems involved mismatched expiration dates.
- The suspended DOT rule would have limited non‑citizen CDL eligibility to E‑2, H‑2A and H‑2B visas with mandatory federal status checks and one‑year maximum terms tied to visa length.
- Safety concerns following several fatal truck crashes, including a Florida case, helped trigger the audit and policy push, while industry groups warn revocations could strain a tight driver labor pool.