The Trump administration announced a sweeping federal enforcement initiative Monday targeting commercial driver’s license fraud, trucking schools, unauthorized employment and other alleged criminal activity within the commercial transportation industry.
The Department of Justice, Department of Transportation and Department of Homeland Security announced the creation of Joint Task Force Crossroads of America, a multi-state partnership involving federal prosecutors and law enforcement agencies in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio.
Federal officials said the effort will investigate fraudulent licensing and training practices, companies employing drivers who are not legally authorized to work in the United States, identity and document fraud, financial crimes, labor exploitation and potential connections to human smuggling and drug trafficking.
The initiative brings together U.S. Attorney’s Offices with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said the effort is intended to address both transportation fraud and public safety concerns.
Become a Paid Subscriber for Exclusive Content Access and Support Independent News
“The safety of American roadways affects everyone across the country,” Blanche said, arguing that some foreign and unauthorized drivers have entered the trucking industry without adequate qualifications or training.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the Department of Transportation has spent the past year and a half strengthening enforcement involving commercial drivers and licensing requirements.
According to the administration, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has placed more than 28,000 commercial drivers out of service for failing federal English-language proficiency requirements since June 2025. Federal officials also said states have canceled more than 30,000 licenses that the administration says were improperly issued to foreign drivers, while more than 8,000 training providers have been removed from the FMCSA registry.
The new enforcement campaign includes several major actions.
FMCSA announced the emergency removal of more than 110 Entry-Level Driver Training providers associated with more than 5,000 drivers who later failed English-language proficiency inspections. Those schools must immediately stop providing federally recognized commercial driver training.
The agency said investigators compared roadside inspection records with its Training Provider Registry to identify schools that repeatedly certified drivers who later failed federal qualification requirements.
A separate investigation launched in July sent 175 investigators into 40 states to conduct nearly 400 reviews of commercial driver training providers.
Federal officials said investigators found problems including instructors without appropriate licenses, inadequate training facilities, missing assessment records and questionable classroom arrangements. One provider reportedly claimed its classroom operated inside a school bus located in the back of a trailer.
Those investigations produced more than 160 proposed removals from the federal training registry. According to FMCSA, commercial drivers certified by those providers have been connected to 239 commercial motor vehicle-related fatalities. The federal announcement does not establish that deficiencies at the schools caused those crashes.
FMCSA is also launching a nationwide audit of third-party CDL skills testers and state oversight programs.
Under federal regulations, states that fail to properly administer their CDL programs can be required to adopt corrective action plans. Continued noncompliance can eventually result in withholding federal highway funds or decertification of a state’s CDL program.
DHS is conducting a parallel enforcement effort.
Homeland Security Investigations said it planned a synchronized Aug. 31 operation involving more than 200 driving schools across 23 states, with agents serving notices of inspection at CDL-related schools, businesses, trucking companies and employers.
HSI and transportation agencies have also distributed more than 1,000 investigative leads involving businesses suspected of unsafe practices or transportation-sector exploitation.
Federal authorities said ongoing investigations include allegations involving trucking companies using B1/B2 visa holders for domestic freight transportation, state motor vehicle employees accepting payments to circumvent licensing requirements, fraudulent medical certifications used in obtaining commercial licenses and companies allegedly involved in visa fraud, labor exploitation or financial crimes.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations is also conducting several initiatives involving commercial transportation, including Operation ICE Wall, targeting trucking companies and drivers involving final removal orders; Operation Guardrail, focused on unauthorized immigrants holding commercial licenses; and Operation Freightliner, which coordinates enforcement with state and local agencies participating in federal 287(g) immigration partnerships.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin tied the initiative directly to immigration enforcement, saying the administration believes states and trucking companies have allowed unauthorized immigrants to obtain commercial licenses without meeting federal standards.
The administration also highlighted several recent fatal crashes involving unauthorized immigrant commercial drivers as part of its justification for expanded enforcement. Marcus Coleman and his daughter Dalilah, who was critically injured in a 2024 crash involving an unauthorized immigrant driver, appeared with federal officials during the announcement.
Eight U.S. Attorneys from Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and Illinois are participating in the initial task force.
Federal officials said the broader objective is to reduce highway fatalities, improve consistency in commercial licensing enforcement and prosecute companies or individuals using fraudulent documents or licensing practices.
The administration described the initiative as its most extensive coordinated effort yet against fraud in the trucking industry, combining Transportation Department regulatory authority with Justice Department prosecutions and DHS immigration and criminal investigations.
About the Author
Discover more from Right Now Oregon
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
