California will revoke 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses after an audit found they extended beyond federal work authorization dates.
California plans to revoke 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses issued to immigrants after officials determined the licenses extended beyond the period the holders were authorized to work in the United States, according to a report from Los Angeles Times.
State law requires that driver’s licenses and federal work permits share the same expiration dates, and notices were sent to affected drivers on November 6 informing them that their licenses would expire within 60 days.
The decision comes amid heightened tensions between Governor Gavin Newsom and the Trump administration over California’s non-domiciled commercial driver’s licensing program. It also follows a nationwide audit prompted by a fatal crash in Florida involving a truck driver living in the U.S. illegally.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy welcomed the revocations, saying: “This is just the tip of the iceberg. My team will continue to force California to prove they have removed every illegal immigrant from behind the wheel of semi-trucks and school buses.”
State officials pushed back, insisting the drivers were authorized to work. Brandon Richards, a spokesman for Gov. Newsom, accused Duffy of spreading misinformation, saying: “Once again, Sean ‘Road Rules’ Duffy fails to share the truth — spreading easily disproven falsehoods in a sad and desperate attempt to please his dear leader.”
California is among 19 states and Washington, D.C., that issue licenses to immigrants without legal status. The audit by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found 25% of licenses issued in California violated federal rules.
DMV officials said they stopped issuing and renewing such licenses on September 29.
Meanwhile, new proposed federal rules mandating immigration checks and limiting eligibility have been temporarily halted by a federal appeals court, offering temporary relief to affected drivers.