New commercial driver's license rules could impact thousands of Valley drivers

CENTRAL VALLEY, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Trump medication launched its latest crackdown connected Friday by tightening the rules for commercialized motortruck drivers nationwide.

"The process for issuing these licenses is absolutely, 100 percent broken," Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.

He went connected to azygous retired California, arsenic the Department of Transportation blocks non-citizens from obtaining CDLs.

"California gave (one driver) a CDL with endorsements to thrust a rider autobus and a schoolhouse autobus that was valid for months aft his ineligible beingness successful the U.S. had expired," Secretary Duffy said.

Non-citizens volition present request an employment-based visa and indispensable acquisition a mandatory national migration presumption check.

The Secretary gave the California DMV 30 days to comply, oregon hazard losing national road funds.

"It's yet to beryllium seen however large of an interaction it's going to be, but I deliberation it's going to marque a huge, possibly 20 percent oregon 25 percent, of our industry," Everett Yockey astatine the Advanced Career Institute successful Fresno said. "We'll hold and see."

The Valley is location to thousands of motortruck drivers.

"I deliberation it's going to interaction the Punjabi assemblage most," Yockey said. "Many of them sponsor and bring radical here. Part of the Punjabi assemblage is giving back."

Some drivers Action News spoke with successful Madera said the caller rules are harsh, telling america disconnected camera that determination are excessively galore regulations arsenic they effort to work.

"Everything goes by truck," Yockey said. "Everything from groceries to lumber to hard goods. Anything that we have, that we buy, comes by truck."

The crackdown comes amid a worsening operator shortage, and it follows a clang that brought nationalist attraction erstwhile a non-citizen from India attempted an amerciable U-turn connected a Florida highway. Three radical successful a minivan died aft hitting the truck's trailer.

Secretary Duffy says determination person been galore unsafe lapses successful the ineligible licensing process, including successful California, wherever the semi-truck operator was living.

"Over 25 percent of these licenses - They were issued illegally," the caput said.

The California DMV did not respond to Action News' petition for remark connected Friday.

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