DOT Sec. Sean Duffy Makes English a Permanent Requirement for Nation's Migrant Truckers

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Friday that the Department of Transportation is moving to permanently require commercial truck drivers to show the ability to read, write, and speak English as a safety measure.

In a post on X, Duffy said the administration is taking steps to make English-language proficiency a permanent part of federal regulations governing commercial drivers. "Today, I am proposing to lock English proficiency rules into federal regulations FOR GOOD, so no future administration can ever undo them," He wrote.

Duffy criticized changes made during the Obama administration, saying they weakened long-standing safety standards for truck drivers. "Barack Obama weakened this rule and allowed illegal truckers onto our highways, but THAT IS NOT HAPPENING AGAIN," He stated.

Duffy highlighted the administration's enforcement efforts, noting that "Over 26,000 unqualified drivers have already been pulled off the road. GET READY FOR MANY, MANY MORE."

A social media post included video footage showing a transportation official asking a commercial truck driver to identify U.S. Highway signs. The driver was reportedly unable to do so because he could not read English.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has begun formal rulemaking to permanently incorporate English Language Proficiency requirements into federal regulations. The department said the move would prevent future administrations from rolling back the standards, citing 2016 enforcement policy changes under the Obama administration that allowed "unqualified drivers to remain on U.S. roads."

English-language requirements had existed since 1937 but were weakened under the Obama administration, according to DOT officials, who said those changes allowed more foreign drivers who did not meet the previous standard to enter the trucking industry.

Under the proposed rule, any commercial driver who cannot adequately read or speak English or understand highway signs and traffic signals will be placed out of service. The agency reported that more than 26,000 drivers have been removed from American highways after failing English proficiency tests.

"Federal law is clear, drivers who can't read or speak English, our national language, or understand road signs are unqualified to operate 80,000-pound big rigs on America's highways," Duffy said in a statement, adding that the standards address "a dangerous loophole that has cost Americans their lives."

The proposal builds on President Donald Trump's April 2025 executive order on truck driver safety standards, which stated that drivers "should be able to read and understand traffic signs, communicate with traffic safety, border patrol, agricultural checkpoints, and cargo weight-limit station officers" And "provide feedback to their employers and customers and receive related directions in English."