{"id":1231,"date":"2025-10-15T23:56:03","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T23:56:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/?p=1231"},"modified":"2025-10-20T08:53:39","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T08:53:39","slug":"duffy-pulls-40m-from-california-over-english-only-trucker-rule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/15\/duffy-pulls-40m-from-california-over-english-only-trucker-rule\/","title":{"rendered":"Duffy pulls $40M from California over English-only trucker rule"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Department of Transportation (DOT) announced Wednesday<\/a> it is withholding more than $40 million in federal highway safety funding from California, over the state failing to comply with English language proficiency guidelines for commercial drivers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI put states on notice this summer: enforce the Trump Administration\u2019s English language requirements or the checks stop coming,\u201d Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a DOT release. \u201cCalifornia is the only state in the nation that refuses to ensure big rig drivers can read our road signs and communicate with law enforcement.” <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a fundamental safety issue that impacts you and your family on America\u2019s roads.\u201d<\/p>\n

Duffy added that California Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s (D) \u201cinsistence on obstructing federal law has tied my hands.\u201d <\/p>\n

When reached for comment, Newsom spokesperson Diana Crofts-Pelayo said the Transportation secretary \u201cneeds a lesson on his own road rules.\u201d Crofts-Pelayo added that statistics show California commercial truck drivers have a lower crash rate than the national average.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the California State Transportation Agency also told The Hill Friday that the state “remains committed to the safety of the traveling public and will continue to comply with applicable federal laws and regulations.” The spokesperson added that the agency is reviewing the DOT’s notice regarding the alleged violations.<\/p>\n

In April, President Trump signed an executive order<\/a> requiring commercial truck drivers to be proficient in English<\/a>, nearly two months after<\/a> he signed an order designating English<\/a> as the national language. <\/p>\n

Duffy signed an order<\/a> in May that aligned Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) policy with the president\u2019s order.<\/p>\n

The funding, totaling nearly $40.7 million, is from the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP). The program provides funding for states to conduct roadside inspections, traffic enforcement, safety audits of trucking companies and public education campaigns, according to the DOT. <\/p>\n

According to the FMSA, which oversees MCSAP grants, the program provided $480 million in funding in fiscal 2024.<\/p>\n

In August, Duffy threatened to withhold<\/a> funding from California, Washington state and New Mexico if they did not come up with \u201ccorrective plans\u201d that complied with federal law within 30 days. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not just us saying we have some obscure rule, this is about keeping people safe on the road \u2014 your families, your loved ones, your kids,\u201d Duffy told reporters<\/a> at the time. <\/p>\n

On Sept. 25, at the end of that grace period, the California State Transportation Agency\u2019s general counsel, Alicia Fowler, wrote a letter to Jesse Ellison, DOT’s chief counsel, outlining the state\u2019s compliance efforts.<\/p>\n

The letter, obtained by The Hill, states that a commercial truck driver, in accordance with California law<\/a>, must pass a test assessing their \u201cability to read and understand simple English used in highway traffic and directional signs.\u201d It also notes that the California Commercial Driver Handbook<\/a> requires all skills tests to be conducted in the English language.<\/p>\n

\u201cThus, in California, the licensing process that confirms English language proficiency before a license is issued fully complies with federal requirements,\u201d the letter adds.<\/p>\n

The DOT, when reached for comment, provided The Hill with a letter it sent to Newsom and Fowler on Wednesday. The letter states that California’s arguments are “misplaced,” and says that the state claiming its skills test policy satisfies federal standards “overlooks the obligation to ensure that all interstate drivers operating within California, regardless of where they are licensed, meet the” English language proficiency requirement.<\/p>\n

The letter noted that DOT and FMCSA will restore the funding “as soon as California begins full enforcement and compliance” with the standards. <\/p>\n

Updated on Oct. 18 at 6:17 p.m. EDT<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Department of Transportation (DOT) announced Wednesday it is withholding more than $40 million in federal highway safety ...<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1233,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1231"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1231"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1232,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1231\/revisions\/1232"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globaltaalenthq.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}