A legal battle has erupted as a coalition of immigrant truck and commercial vehicle drivers has taken Californias Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to court, accusing the agency of infringing upon workers' rights by planning to revoke thousands of improperly issued licenses.
According to Conservative Daily News, the DMV informed drivers and business owners in November that a significant number of commercial drivers licenses (CDLs) would be rescinded starting in early 2026, unless drivers adhered to "new federal guidelines" mandating proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency.
However, by December 10, the DMV began to reverse its stance on issuing new licenses, eventually halting the process altogether. Plaintiffs in the lawsuit argue that this abrupt change was a result of "pressure from the federal government."
The lawsuit, representing approximately 20,000 immigrant drivers and business owners residing in California, contends that the DMV's administrative missteps have jeopardized the livelihoods of thousands of drivers by threatening their CDLs. "Plaintiffs have bought homes, cars, and trucks, relying on their ability to continue working a well-paying job that requires a CDL.
Many drivers are the main or even sole providers for their families. The DMVs actions will result in the loss of their hard-earned careers and impose severe financial and emotional hardships on the drivers and their families," the lawsuit claims.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy criticized California in October for disregarding the Department of Transportations English-language requirements for truck drivers, warning of a potential withdrawal of $40 million in federal funds. This scrutiny followed a tragic accident involving an illegal immigrant truck driver, who had been granted a CDL by the state, resulting in the deaths of three individuals.
Indian national Harjinder Singh, unlawfully residing in the U.S., faced charges in August for three counts of vehicular homicide after causing a fatal accident on Floridas Turnpike near Port St. Lucie. Singh's failure in an English Language Proficiency (ELP) assessment was highlighted, as he managed only two correct answers out of 12 verbal questions and correctly identified just one of four highway traffic signs, according to a DOT press release.
In addition to his failed ELP, it was disclosed that Singh had illegally entered the U.S. in 2018 via the U.S.-Mexico border and subsequently obtained his CDL in California. Following these tragic events, Duffy announced in November that Californias DMV had confessed to unlawfully issuing 17,000 non-domiciled commercial drivers licenses to migrant drivers, a figure that has since exceeded 20,000, as reported by ABC News.
The Sikh Coalition, a national civil rights organization, along with the San Francisco-based Asian Law Caucus, is representing the affected California drivers. They are petitioning the Alameda County Superior Court to halt the license cancellations, seeking to protect the drivers' ability to continue their careers and support their families.
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