AI Generated Summary
- According to an Associated Press report cited by HT, Duffy said the state could lose up to $160 million in federal transportation funds if it does not comply with a January 5 deadline to revoke licences issued to drivers who do not meet federal requirements.
- The move comes just one week after a group of immigrant drivers filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Motor Vehicles, accusing the state of unfairly targeting immigrant communities.
- In a post on social media, he insisted the state does not have permission to “keep breaking the law,” adding that stricter enforcement is necessary to protect motorists.
California has postponed plans to revoke roughly 17,000 commercial driver’s licences, granting a temporary reprieve to thousands of truck and bus drivers after a legal challenge and mounting pressure from federal authorities. State officials confirmed Tuesday that the revocations will now be delayed until March, allowing additional time to review cases and ensure that drivers who legally qualify are not wrongly stripped of their livelihoods.
The move comes just one week after a group of immigrant drivers filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Motor Vehicles, accusing the state of unfairly targeting immigrant communities. The lawsuit argues that many drivers who are lawfully eligible to work risk losing their licences due to broad enforcement measures driven by federal demands.
At the center of the dispute is a warning from U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has threatened to cut off significant federal funding if California fails to act. According to an Associated Press report cited by HT, Duffy said the state could lose up to $160 million in federal transportation funds if it does not comply with a January 5 deadline to revoke licences issued to drivers who do not meet federal requirements. Already, $40 million has reportedly been withheld.
Duffy has accused California of failing to enforce English proficiency standards for commercial drivers and has framed the issue as a matter of public safety. In a post on social media, he insisted the state does not have permission to “keep breaking the law,” adding that stricter enforcement is necessary to protect motorists. In another message, he said the federal government is backing tougher oversight with more than $118 million in grants aimed at keeping “unqualified, unvetted drivers off the road.”
California began sending notices invalidating licences after sustained pressure from federal officials to ensure that individuals without legal immigration status are not granted commercial driving privileges. The issue has drawn national attention following several deadly crashes involving drivers who were later found to be in the United States illegally. An August crash in Florida killed three people, and a separate fiery accident in California in October, also fatal, intensified scrutiny of licensing practices.
Civil rights groups, however, argue that the response has unfairly painted immigrant drivers as a public danger. The Sikh Coalition and the San Francisco-based Asian Law Caucus filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of affected drivers, contending that enforcement efforts have disproportionately targeted immigrant communities, including Sikh truckers.
Immigrants account for about one in five truck drivers nationwide, according to the report, while so-called non-domiciled licences—available to immigrants—represent roughly 5% of all commercial driver’s licences, or about 200,000 drivers.
Munmeeth Kaur, legal director of the Sikh Coalition, welcomed the state’s decision to delay the revocations, calling it “an important step towards alleviating the immediate threat that these drivers are facing to their lives and livelihoods.”
California is not alone in facing federal scrutiny. Authorities have also threatened to withhold millions of dollars in funding from Pennsylvania, Minnesota and New York after audits uncovered widespread issues, including commercial licences remaining valid long after drivers’ work permits had expired.
For now, the March delay offers temporary relief, but the broader clash between federal enforcement priorities, state practices and immigrant workers’ rights appears far from resolved.
