Overview
- FMCSA said a sample audit of New York’s non‑domiciled CDLs found 107 of 200 records were issued in violation of federal rules, a 53% failure rate.
- Federal officials cited practices such as defaulting to eight‑year licenses for foreign applicants and relying on expired lawful‑presence documents.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy gave the state 30 days to pause new non‑domiciled CDLs and learner permits, audit its program, and revoke improperly issued licenses or risk losing $73 million.
- New York’s DMV rejected the findings as false and insisted it follows federal verification requirements, saying it will review the letter and respond.
- The action extends a national crackdown that pushed California to revoke about 17,000 licenses and flagged problems in Minnesota and Washington, with New York holding roughly 32,000 active non‑domiciled CDLs.