270 commercial driving schools closed after thousands of failed English tests

Key Points:

• Federal agencies announced a coordinated effort to revoke licenses of 270 commercial driver’s license (CDL) schools after thousands of drivers failed English proficiency tests, with 110 schools targeted for emergency removal due to association with over 5,000 failing drivers.
• The Department of Transportation is also auditing third-party CDL testers and state oversight, while 160 additional schools were closed for issues like improper facilities and unlicensed trainers.
• The Department of Homeland Security conducted a synchronized sweep of more than 200 training schools across 23 states, and the Department of Justice formed a task force to enhance border security and highway safety.
• Since early 2025, the Department of Transportation removed 28,000 CDL holders for English proficiency failures and shut down over 30,000 illegally issued licenses to foreign drivers, following President Trump’s 2025 executive order enforcing English proficiency for commercial drivers.
• This crackdown responds to recent fatal crashes involving non-English-speaking drivers, with plans to codify mandatory English-language testing for all commercial drivers to improve safety and compliance nationwide.