Trump administration orders closure of 110 truck-driving schools over English proficiency violations

The Trump administration ordered the immediate closure of 110 commercial truck-driving schools on Monday, August 31, for willfully disregarding federal English-language proficiency requirements. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration executed the emergency removal orders, removing the schools from the federal Training Provider Registry and barring them from providing federally recognized entry-level driver training. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the schools had trained more than 5,000 drivers who were later cited for English-language proficiency violations during roadside inspections. A federal rule requiring commercial motor vehicle operators to speak English has been in place for decades, Duffy stated. ASC Technical Institute in Texas certified 58 drivers later cited for language violations, including one who ran a stop sign and killed a man, according to the same reporting. FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs said that unqualified commercial drivers have caused hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries nationwide. The administration highlighted the case of Delilah Coleman, 5 years old, who was struck by a commercial driver, leaving her in a three-week coma with a severe brain injury, per Washington Examiner reporting. The agency's investigation of 400 training providers found that 40 percent failed federal requirements, according to the Washington Examiner. Alleged violations included unlicensed instructors, inadequate training space, missing classrooms, and unsupervised driving. The FMCSA has proposed removing another 160 schools as a result. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said much of the problem stems from liberal "sanctuary" states and cities that are passing off commercial driver's licenses to individuals who haven't earned them. Mullin, a former Republican senator from Oklahoma, said the Oklahoma death helped prompt an enforcement operation along Interstate 40. On the first day of that operation, 107 trucks were placed out of service, including vehicles driven by people whose licenses listed "no name given," according to the Washington Examiner. Mullin said: "These individuals are dangerous because of the failure from the previous administration, from the Biden administration. They killed hundreds of people and, unfortunately, injured thousands." Transportation Secretary Duffy said the Biden administration admitted millions of migrants without adequate access to their criminal or driving histories. Duffy stated: "You have to speak English to operate a commercial motor vehicle. I didn't create that rule. President Trump didn't create that rule. That rule has been in place for decades."