Trump withholds $40M from California over trucker English rules
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The Trump administration plans to cut $40 million from California over its refusal to implement an English language requirement for truckers, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Wednesday.
The move comes weeks after an investigation revealed that illegal immigrant truck driver Harjinder Singh killed three people after making an illegal U-turn on a Florida road in August. California had issued the driver a commercial driver’s license, but those English rules predate the accident.
Duffy pointed to California’s failures to enforce English proficiency rules following one of President Donald Trump’s executive orders.
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California Governor Gavin Newsom (left) and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy (right). On Wednesday, Duffy said he would cut $40 million for California’s failure to enforce English language rules for commercial truck drivers. (Ayfun Coşkun/Anadolu via Getty Images (left); Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images (right))
“California is the only state in the nation that denies big truck drivers the ability to read our road signs and communicate with law enforcement. This is a fundamental safety issue that affects you and your family on America’s roads,” Duffy said.
“Golden State thinks it’s okay to ignore @USDOT English language requirements for truckers. You can play all the games you want, but not at the expense of American lives,” Duffy wrote to X.
Duffy said the truck driver in the Florida accident should not have been given a commercial license due to his immigration status.
Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokeswoman for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, told Fox News Digital that the crash rate for California commercial truck drivers is lower than the national average.
Composite footage shows firefighters responding to a fatal crash in Florida linked to Harjinder Singh’s truck and body camera footage of Singh allegedly speeding in New Mexico on July 3, 2025. (St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office; New Mexico State Police body camera)
“It looks like the Minister of Transport needs a lesson about the laws surrounding his roads,” Crofts-Pelayo said. “The truth is simple: The fatal crash rate for commercial driver’s license holders in California was almost 40% lower than the national average. In Texas, the only state with more commercial driver’s license holders, the rate was almost 50% higher than in California.”
“While it may seem optional for the Trump Administration, facts don’t lie,” he added.
GOP REPRESENTATIVE TARGETS TRUCKERS’ ENGLISH SKILLS AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT BLAMED IN FATAL CRASH IN FLORIDA
Harjinder Singh, a 28-year-old illegal alien from India, was arrested on August 16, 2025. Singh allegedly attempted to make an unauthorized U-turn in Ft. There was a crash in Pierce, Florida on Tuesday that resulted in three deaths. (United States Marshals Service)
Singh, an Indian citizen, is being held without bail after being charged with vehicular homicide and immigration violations in three states.
Investigators said he failed his English proficiency test but was still given a license to drive the truck. Duffy and Florida officials blamed Washington state, as well as California, for issuing him a commercial driver’s license.
But California officials said Singh had a valid work permit at the time. Authorities said he entered the United States illegally from Mexico in 2018.
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To restore funding, California must enforce English rules and have state inspectors test truck drivers’ English skills during roadside inspections and remove anyone who fails from the road.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
