In another big announcement from the Trump Administration, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced on Wednesday, January 7, that his Department of Transportation would be yanking away a whopping $160 million from California because it has failed to revoke the thousands of Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) that it had illegally issued to illegal aliens.
As background, a number of high-profile, deadly accidents on American roads caused by illegal aliens who were issued CDLs by blue states like California have led to the Trump Administration cracking down on the CDL matter, particularly as catching them on the roads is a great way to effect deportations.
Related to that, Sec. Duffy has been threatening and pressing Gavin Newsom and California over the CDL matter, as it is one of the most notorious violators of the laws regarding not issuing them to illegal aliens. Now, the DOT and Secretary Duffy are saying that time is up and California is going to reap the whirlwind of its own actions.
Beginning the announcement, the DOT said, “U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy today announced that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is withholding approximately $160 million from the State of California for failing to cancel over 17,000 illegally issued Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) by the agreed-upon deadline of January 5, 2026.”
Continuing, the DOT explained that California had not acted on time and is continuing to put America at risk, saying, “The FMCSA issued a Final Determination after California refused to cancel the licenses on time, allowing foreign drivers with invalid licenses to continue operating on American roads.”
Further, the DOT explained, “As part of the Secretary’s Nationwide Non-Domiciled CDL Audit, FMCSA uncovered a systemic collapse of California’s non-domiciled CDL program, which allowed the state to illegally issue licenses with expiration dates extending years beyond a driver’s lawful presence and to grant CDLs to individuals who were ineligible to hold them.”
Additionally, it explained that California has illegally issued tens of thousands of CDLs to those who shouldn’t receive such licenses. It said, “In total, more than 20,000 active non-domiciled CDLs were issued by California in violation of federal safety regulations.”
"*" indicates required fields
Secretary Duffy, for his part, explained that California had been given time to comply but refused to do so, and so was facing a reckoning. He said, “It’s reckoning day for Gavin Newsom and California. Our demands were simple: follow the rules, revoke the unlawfully-issued licenses to dangerous foreign drivers, and fix the system so this never happens again.”
Yet further, he argued that Gov. Newsom of California is putting illegal aliens first and Americans last by putting them at risk on the roads with the CDL issue, saying, “Gavin Newsom has failed to do so – putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people.”
Concluding, the secretary said that the Trump Administration is going to protect American motorists whether states like California are helpful in that or not, saying, “While Gavin may not care about protecting you and your family on our roads, the Trump Administration does. We’re pulling this funding to ensure federal tax dollars don’t fund this charade.”
Watch the video the DOT released here: