Federal Rule, Not Immigrants, Is Driving America’s Trucking Crisis

Federal regulators have precipitated a trucking crisis by issuing an FMCSA interim rule in September that effectively excludes most lawfully present, work-authorized immigrant drivers from obtaining, renewing, or maintaining non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs).

What the Rule Does

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration narrowed eligibility for non-domiciled CDLs to just three visa categories — H-2A, H-2B and E-2 — excluding refugees, asylees, DACA recipients and many other workers who previously could operate commercial vehicles with a valid employment authorization document. These drivers meet the same federal licensing tests, medical standards and drug-and-alcohol screening requirements as other CDL holders, yet the rule treats immigration category itself as a disqualifier.

Evidence—or the Lack Thereof

FMCSA has offered no robust statistical evidence that immigration status predicts highway danger. Instead, the agency cited a small number of isolated crashes and expressed speculative concerns about verifying some foreign-driving records. Its regulatory analysis concedes a likely outcome: roughly 194,000 current non-domiciled CDL holders — about 97% of that group — would be forced out of the freight market, while the agency provides no comparative safety data showing these drivers are less safe than their peers.

Misleading Public Narratives

Officials and pundits seized on two high-profile crashes to justify the crackdown. After the August fatal crash in Florida and a September crash in Ontario, California, social and cable media circulated misleading claims that focused on immigration status or alleged intoxication. In both cases, government records showed the drivers had valid state CDLs and employment authorization documents, and toxicology in the second case was negative. Those facts were downplayed as the narrative centered on immigration rather than evidence.

Legal Pushback and Immediate Consequences

Courts have long held that agencies cannot base sweeping rules on impermissible factors such as nationality or immigration status masquerading as safety metrics. On Nov. 10, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued an administrative stay, pausing FMCSA’s rule while it evaluates whether the agency exceeded its authority and adequately justified this departure from longstanding practice.

Human, Safety, And Economic Costs

The rule’s fallout is already evident. Sikh and other immigrant truckers — roughly one in five long-haul drivers — report increased harassment, profiling and bias, including bottles thrown at rigs, insults and more frequent traffic stops tied to appearance and religious dress. Removing nearly 200,000 trained, authorized drivers from the freight system amid a projected driver shortfall of more than 160,000 by 2030 risks longer routes, tighter schedules, greater fatigue and higher safety risks for the entire supply chain.

Policy Choices Matter

Across the United States, 19 states and the District of Columbia allow eligible residents to obtain standard driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status because lawmakers recognize that licensed, trained and insured drivers improve road safety. FMCSA’s rule abandons that practical approach. Lawfully present, federally authorized immigrant drivers meet the same safety standards as other CDL holders; immigration status is not a reliable proxy for risk.

Conclusion: America’s freight system depends on experienced drivers. The real threat to road safety is not immigrant truckers but the substitution of political narratives for evidence-based policy. Federal leaders should rescind the FMCSA rule and restore a commonsense, data-driven approach to driver licensing.

Bhupinder Kaur is Director of Operations for UNITED SIKHS, a United Nations–affiliated nonprofit focused on civil rights, humanitarian relief and community empowerment.