WASHINGTON, D.C.—In case you missed it, following the tragic death of three individuals in Florida caused by an illegal alien commercial truck driver, Senator Ashley Moody introduced the Safer Truckers Act to protect drivers on the roadways. The Safer Truckers Act establishes lawful U.S. residency requirements for Commercial Drivers Licenses (CDLs) and requires states to report adherence of English proficiency standards to ensure truckers can read road warnings and signs. Failure to do both would result in the loss of federal funding. The American Trucking Association and the Florida Trucking Association shared words of support following Senator Moody’s introduction. FTA has endorsed the legislation.
Senator Ashley Moody said, “If you’re a commercial truck driver in America, being able to competently read the road signs in English isn’t optional… it’s the job. That’s why I’m introducing the Safer Truckers Act to prevent what we saw just happen in my home state where an illegal alien, who couldn’t read road signs, made a dangerous U-Turn in the middle of an interstate and killed three people. States must ensure that folks are safe on our roadways and if they don’t, they should forfeit federal funds.”
Henry Hanscom, American Trucking Associations Senior VP of Legislative Affairs, said, “The recent crash in Florida was a preventable tragedy and underscored the need for stronger enforcement measures that remove dangerous, unqualified drivers from our nation’s highways. ATA supports strict enforcement of English proficiency standards, along with the broader regulatory safety framework. We commend Senator Moody for shining a spotlight on this issue by working to hold states accountable and close dangerous loopholes.”
Alix Miller, President and CEO of Florida Trucking Association said, “On behalf of Florida Trucking Association, I applaud the introduction of The Safer Truckers Act of 2025 by Florida’s own Senator, Ashley Moody. The number one priority for the trucking industry is safety. Senator Moody’s proposal will close loopholes that have allowed unauthorized and unqualified drivers to operate heavy commercial vehicles and reinforce the integrity of our licensing system; improving security on America’s highways.”
Senator Moody’s legislation adds two additional requirements to the minimal standards that are administered by the federal government to states for CDL issuance. Compliance on these additional standards would directly impact the federal funds the states receive from the Department of Transportation.
- The first requirement ensures that CDLs are only awarded to U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, or a holder of a valid work visa.
- The second requirement requires states to report to the federal government on their efforts to uphold the English proficiency requirements. President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the relevant agencies to focus on enforcing those provisions.
Failure to adhere to these two provisions would jeopardize a state’s eligibility funding and becomes the mechanism by which the federal government can force compliance from sanctuary states like California and Washington.
The proposed legislation comes following the tragic deaths caused by an illegal immigrant truck driver in Florida. On August 12, Harjinder Singh made an illegal U-turn on the Florida Turnpike, causing a fatal accident that took the lives of three. According to the DOT, the truck driver, who was granted a CDL by California and Washington, provided correct responses to only two of 12 verbal questions and was only able to identify one of four traffic signs correctly on his English Language Proficiency test.
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