Washington: A sweeping federal review of commercial driving schools across the United States has placed nearly half of all listed programmes at risk of losing their credentials, triggering widespread anxiety within the trucking industry — particularly among Punjabi and Sikh drivers, who make up a major share of America’s long-haul workforce.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that roughly 3,000 truck-driving schools will have their certification revoked within 30 days unless they prove they meet minimum training standards. An additional 4,500 institutions have been warned they could face similar penalties. In total, the government’s review found that about 44% of the 16,000 federally listed programmes may not be complying with basic requirements.
Schools that lose certification will no longer be able to issue the mandatory training certificates needed to obtain a commercial driver’s license (CDL), a move expected to drive students away and force many programmes to shut down. Federal officials say some of the targeted schools may not even be active, but others are accused of lax standards, falsified training records or operating as “CDL mills.”
Safety Concerns Behind Crackdown
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the action follows a fatal Florida crash involving a truck driver who was reportedly not authorised to live in the U.S. and who made an illegal U-turn, killing three people. The incident accelerated federal efforts to clamp down on training programmes and tighten CDL oversight.
Duffy has since threatened to withhold federal funds from multiple states — including California, Pennsylvania and Minnesota — over alleged failures in verifying immigration status or properly vetting commercial drivers. While many of the states publicly challenged the political motivations of the warnings, Minnesota officials insisted they were already addressing deficiencies flagged by regulators.
Industry groups say that while stronger standards are overdue, the government’s sweeping actions risk worsening the driver shortage if not implemented carefully. Andrew Poliakoff of the Commercial Vehicle Training Association said many of the schools singled out were offering unrealistically quick weekend courses. “They were fleecing people,” he said, adding that legitimate programmes typically require at least a month of training.
Immigrant-Owned Trucking Firms Under Federal Audit
In a parallel action, the Department of Homeland Security has begun examining trucking firms — especially in California — to verify workers’ immigration documents and confirm that employees meet CDL eligibility criteria. Though DHS did not comment on the audits, several Punjabi-owned companies reported intense document checks.
This has created deep unease among Sikh drivers, many of whom say they feel unfairly targeted. The U.S. has approximately 150,000 Sikh truckers — including an estimated 1.5 lakh Punjabi drivers — who play a central role in long-haul transportation, especially on the West Coast.
The UNITED SIKHS advocacy group warned that well-intentioned safety measures were morphing into discrimination. “Law-abiding, licensed Sikh and immigrant truckers are being treated like suspects,” the organisation said. “Policies based on fear, rather than facts, risk sowing xenophobia and destabilising the supply chain.”
Tensions escalated after two high-profile crashes this year — one in Florida and one in California — involved Sikh drivers, leading to reports of harassment and profiling within the broader community.
Industry Praises Oversight — With Caveats
While immigrant groups face the brunt of the scrutiny, many trucking associations support stronger national standards to prevent unqualified drivers from entering the industry.
“Bad actors exploiting the system put everyone at risk,” said Paul J. Enos, CEO of the Nevada Trucking Association. Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association president Todd Spencer echoed the sentiment, noting that weak or nonexistent training protocols undermine road safety.
California, under pressure from federal officials, has already begun moving to cancel 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses deemed improperly issued or extended beyond legal work permits.
Uncertain Road Ahead
With thousands of schools under review, immigrant-run businesses facing audits and the political rhetoric around CDL eligibility intensifying, advocates fear the crackdown could reshape the workforce that keeps America’s freight sector running.
For now, both state governments and industry bodies are bracing for large-scale disruptions — and tens of thousands of Punjabi truckers find themselves navigating not just America’s highways, but a tightening regulatory landscape that may redefine who gets to stay behind the wheel.
