Trump administration withholds $40M from California over trucker English proficiency rules
The Trump administration plans to withhold million from California over its refusal to enforce English language requirements for truckers Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday The move came weeks after an analysis unveiled that an illegal immigrant truck driver Harjinder Singh killed three people after making an illegal U-turn on a Florida road in August California had issued the driver a commercial license but these English rules predate the crash Duffy cited failures by California to enforce English proficiency rules following one of President Donald Trump s executive orders DUFFY RESPONDS WITH 'CROCODILE TEARS' COMMENT ON BANNED CALIFORNIA TRUCK DRIVER SCENARIO California is the only state in the nation that refuses to ensure big rig drivers can read our road signs and communicate with law enforcement This is a fundamental safety issue that impacts you and your family on America s roads Duffy announced The Golden State thinks it s OK to ignore USDOT English language requirements for truckers You can play all the games you want but not at the expense of American lives Duffy wrote on X Duffy stated the truck driver in the Florida crash should not have been given a commercial license because of his immigration status Diana Crofts-Pelayo a spokesperson for California Gov Gavin Newsom informed Fox News Digital that California commercial truck drivers have a lower crash rate than the national average It seems the Secretary of Transportation requirements a lesson about the laws of his own roads Crofts-Pelayo explained The reality is simple Commercial driver's license holders in California had a fatal accident rate nearly LOWER than the national average Texas the only state with more commercial driver's license holders has a rate nearly higher than California's The facts don't lie although for the Trump Administration they seem optional she added GOP REP TARGETS TRUCKER'S ENGLISH SKILLS AFTER ILLEGAL MIGRANT CHARGED IN DEADLY FLORIDA CRASHSingh an Indian citizen is being held without bond after being charged with three state counts of vehicular homicide and immigration violations Investigators revealed he failed an English proficiency test but was still issued a license to drive trucks Duffy and Florida officers have blamed California as well as Washington state for issuing him a commercial driver s license However California personnel noted Singh had a valid work permit at the time Leadership reported he entered the United States illegally from Mexico in To have the funding reinstated California must enforce the English rules and ensure that state inspectors test truck drivers English skills during roadside inspections and remove anyone from the road who fails The Associated Press contributed to this review
