FMCSA Wants More Details From California on CDL Compliance
Explanation Sought for Why Nearly 24,000 Non-Compliant CDLs Exist In State Records
Key Takeaways:
- FMCSA's Nov. 13 to California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Department of Motor Vehicles outlined a series of actions the state must take..
- Agency also imposed a Dec. 1 deadline for California to detail its plans to revoke 17,000 non-compliant, non-domiciled CDLs.
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The is asking the state of California to explain why nearly 24,000 non-compliant non-domiciled commercial driver licenses currently exist in state records.
FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs issued the directive in a 12-page “Conditional Determination” letter sent Nov. 13 to and Department of Motor Vehicles Director Steve Gordon that outlined a series of actions the state must take to rectify what FMCSA has determined are problematic processes and systems tied to California’s issuance of commercial licenses.
Also in the letter, Barrs imposed a Dec. 1 deadline for California to detail its plans to revoke 17,000 non-domiciled CDLs found to be non-compliant with federal law. The state announced on Nov. 12 it had notified those drivers their licenses will expirein 60 days.
Non-domiciled CDLs are issued to foreign drivers who are required to maintain legal U.S. residence and work permits.
Barrs in the letter indicated that California may have issued thousands more commercial driver licenses and commercial learner’s permits that fail to adhere to federal law, noting that California has 65,000 records of non-domiciled CDL holders. Among them, Barrs said are:
- 20,000 non-domiciled CDLs issued by California that have expiration dates that exceed the driver’s legal authority to remain in the U.S.
- 3,970 non-domiciled CDLs issued to Mexican citizens. Mexican and Canadian citizens do not require U.S.-issued licenses, as their home countries’ licenses have reciprocity on U.S. roads.
RELATED:Lawmakers Urge DOT Crackdown on Fraudulent CDL Mills
Barrs in the letter acknowledged that California has committed to taking corrective actions to resolve FMCSA’s concerns, but noted that the state’s DMV “did not immediately pause all non-domiciled CLP and CDL licensing [and] continued to process certain non-domiciled CLP and CDL upgrades, including upgrading the non-domiciled CDL of a driver who was subsequently involved in a fatal crash.”
Barrs was referring to a fatal October crash near Los Angeles involving the holder of a California-issued, non-domiciled CDL in which three people were killed and two were injured.
“FMCSA is disappointed that DMV did not comply with the required corrective action of pausing all non-domiciled CLP and CDL licensing,” Barrs said. “FMCSA emphasizes that it is important that DMV’s corrective action include an immediate pause of non-domiciled CLP and CDL licensing until DMV ensures that its practices comply with each and every standard” of federal regulation.
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Barrs directed the DMV to submit the findings of its internal audit to FMCSA. It also directed the agency to rescind all non-compliant non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs and reissue those that are in compliance with federal law.
Once California notifies FMCSA that the corrective actions have been completed, “FMCSA will conduct a supplemental review of DMV’s non-domiciled CLP and CDL issuance practices to verify that the corrective actions have been completed,” Barrs said.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy had warned California that it could lose $160 million in federal transportation grants if it failed to comply. The two sides have been in regular communication since then. California had set a Nov. 15 target date to complete its internal audit.
Duffy in June initiated a nationwide audit of states that issue non-domiciled CDLs and commercial learner’s permits.
