Overview
- A Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration review found 107 of 200 sampled New York non‑domiciled commercial driver’s licenses were issued in violation of federal rules, a 53% failure rate.
- Federal officials said New York’s DMV defaulted to eight‑year license terms for foreign applicants regardless of work‑authorization end dates and in some cases relied on expired or unverified status documents across roughly 32,000 active licenses.
- DOT ordered New York to pause issuing or renewing non‑domiciled CDLs and learner permits, revoke any improperly issued licenses, and conduct a comprehensive audit or face the funding cutoff.
- New York’s DMV disputed the findings, saying it follows federal regulations and verifies lawful status for every CDL applicant, and pledged to review the department’s letter.
- The action is part of a nationwide crackdown that has identified problems in eight states; California has revoked about 21,000 CDLs, Texas faces potential $182 million in penalties, and courts have paused new DOT restrictions even as 9,500 drivers were removed for failing English‑proficiency checks.