The penalty is the latest in a federal campaign that has already cost California $200 million and placed Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and North Carolina at risk of similar losses. The enforcement push stems from a nationwide audit Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy launched after an August 2025 crash in Florida that killed three people, in which the driver held a non-domiciled CDL.
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced Thursday it will withhold more than $73.5 million in federal funding from New York state after the state refused to revoke 32,606 non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses issued to immigrants that a federal audit found had significant problems.
More than half of the 200 licenses reviewed during the audit had serious deficiencies — including licenses that remained valid long after the immigrant holder’s authorization to remain in the country had expired — according to the department. State officials were ordered to review all such licenses and revoke those found to be invalid. New York declined to comply.
“I promised the American people I would hold any state leader accountable for failing to keep them safe from unvetted, unqualified foreign drivers. I’m delivering on that promise today,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.
National enforcement campaign
The action against New York is part of a broader federal review Duffy launched after an August 2025 crash in Florida that killed three people. The driver held a non-domiciled CDL — a license category that allows immigrants to drive commercially in the United States.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has reviewed non-domiciled CDL records in every state. California has forfeited $200 million in federal funds over the same issue. Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and North Carolina have been warned they risk similar losses if they do not come into compliance. Most other states have either complied or are in active negotiations with the agency, according to the Transportation Department.
The license category
Non-domiciled CDLs represent about 5% of all commercial driver’s licenses nationally, covering approximately 200,000 drivers. New York issued 32,606 of them. Duffy has said immigrants account for about 20% of all truck drivers nationwide.
New rules announced by the Transportation Department will prevent 97% of those foreign drivers from obtaining a commercial license again, Duffy said.
New York’s response
New York officials have defended their licensing practices and said they are complying with federal law. State officials noted that audits conducted during the first Trump administration supported their position.
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s spokesman Sean Butler said the funding action appeared to be part of a broader effort to penalize Democratic-led states.
“This continues a yearlong pattern of Secretary Duffy threatening to withhold money that keeps our roads, subways, and other infrastructure safe for New Yorkers. We will fight back, and once again we will win,” Butler said.
Thursday’s penalty is not the department’s first funding dispute with New York. Duffy previously placed a hold on $18 billion earmarked for a subway extension in Manhattan and rail tunnels beneath the Hudson River. The Trump administration separately agreed Thursday to restore funding for the subway extension. A federal judge had earlier ordered the tunnel funding to continue. Duffy also threatened to withdraw federal funds over New York City’s congestion pricing program and subway safety conditions; the state challenged both actions in court and prevailed.
Industry support, community concerns
Trucking industry groups praised the enforcement campaign. Todd Spencer, president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, said enforcement actions of this kind “will remove bad actors from the road and restore accountability to the system.”
“Today’s action is an important step toward safer highways and a stronger, more professional trucking industry,” Spencer said.
Immigrant advocacy groups said some drivers are being unfairly targeted. Sikh truckers have faced particular scrutiny; the driver in the August 2025 Florida fatal crash and the driver in a separate fatal crash in California in October 2025 are both reported to be Sikhs.