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The Trump administration plans to withhold $40 million from California about its refusal to enforce English language skills for truck drivers, Transport Minister Sean Duffy said on Wednesday.
The move came weeks after an investigation found that an illegal immigrant truck driver, Harjinder Singh, killed three people in August after making an illegal U-turn on a Florida road. California had issued the driver a commercial driver’s license, but these English rules were in place before the accident.
Duffy pointed to California’s failures to enforce English language proficiency requirements due to an executive order from President Donald Trump.
DUFFY RESPONDS TO THE BANNED CALIFORNIA TRUCK DRIVER CASE WITH A “CROCODILE TEARS” COMMENT
California Governor Gavin Newsom (left) and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy (right). On Wednesday, Duffy said he would withhold $40 million from California for failing to enforce English language rules for commercial truck drivers. (Ayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images (left); Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images (right))
“California is the only state in the country that refuses to ensure large truck drivers can read our traffic signs and communicate with law enforcement. This is a fundamental safety issue that affects you and your family on America’s roads,” Duffy said.
“The Golden State thinks it’s OK to ignore @USDOT English language requirements for truckers. You can play all the games you want, but not at the expense of American life,” Duffy wrote on X.
Duffy said the truck driver in the Florida accident should not have received a business license because of his accident Immigration status.
Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokeswoman for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, told Fox News Digital that California truck drivers have a lower accident rate than the national average.
Composite image shows firefighters responding to a fatal accident in Florida involving Harjinder Singh’s truck and bodycam still image of Singh being cited for speeding in New Mexico on July 3, 2025. (St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office; New Mexico State Police Body Camera)
“It seems the transport minister needs a lesson on the laws of his own roads,” Crofts-Pelayo said. “The reality is simple: The fatal crash rate among commercial driver’s license holders in California was nearly 40% lower than the national average. Texas, the only state with more commercial driver’s license holders, has a rate nearly 50% higher than California.”
“The facts don’t lie, even though they seem optional for the Trump administration,” she added.
Harjinder Singh, a 28-year-old illegal immigrant from India, was arrested on August 16, 2025. Singh allegedly tried to live in Ft. make an unauthorized U-turn. Pierce, Florida, an accident occurred on Tuesday that killed three people. (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 an English test but still received a truck driver’s license. Duffy and Florida officials have also blamed California as Washington State for issuing a commercial driver’s license.
However, 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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For funding to be reinstated, California must enforce English rules and ensure that state inspectors test truck drivers’ English proficiency during roadside inspections and remove anyone from the road who doesn’t.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
