Colorado Joins New York, California as DOT Expands CDL Crackdown
Summary
The U.S. Department of Transportation has added Colorado to a growing list of states under review for improperly issued commercial driver’s licences (CDLs). DOT Secretary Sean Duffy warned Colorado that the department could pull around $24 million in federal funding and even decertify the state’s CDL programme unless the state revokes licences federal officials say were issued unlawfully. A nationwide audit by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found about 22% of Colorado’s non-domiciled CDLs sampled were issued in violation of federal rules — many to Mexican nationals, which federal rules prohibit.
The enforcement drive follows similar findings in other states: New York (53% unlawful in sampled records), California (more than 25% flagged, with roughly 17,000–21,000 revoked), and several others that have received warning letters or compliance notices. DOT officials say the review may expand to more jurisdictions.
Key Points
- DOT threatened to withhold about $24 million from Colorado and could decertify the state’s CDL programme if improperly issued licences are not revoked immediately.
- An FMCSA audit found roughly 22% of sampled non-domiciled CDLs in Colorado violated federal requirements.
- Several states are affected: New York (worst in sampled records), California, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and more have been warned or flagged.
- California has already revoked an estimated 17,000–21,000 non-domiciled CDLs following DOT pressure.
- Federal action targets non-domiciled CDL issuance practices and compliance with rules such as English-proficiency and domicile requirements; the review may widen to additional states.
Context and relevance
This is part of a broader federal push to crack down on so-called “CDL mills” and ensure states follow long-standing federal licensing rules. For fleets, carriers and state transport authorities the consequences are practical and immediate: funding threats, revoked licences, operational disruption and potential driver shortages if large groups of licences are invalidated. The crackdown also reinforces stricter scrutiny around non-domiciled driver credentials and could influence hiring, training and compliance practices across the industry.
Why should I read this?
Quick, blunt: if you run trucks, manage drivers or handle compliance, this could hit your operations — and fast. Funding at stake, licences getting pulled, and more states likely to be added. We skimmed the official notices and the audit so you don’t have to — but you should read the detail if you want to avoid surprises at audit time.