$118 Million in Grants to Make US Trucking Safer to Be Issued

The investments will ensure that ‘only qualified drivers are getting behind the wheel,’ the Transportation Department said.

Semi-trucks line up near Pier J to retrieve shipping containers from a China-based ship at the Port of Long Beach, in Long Beach, Calif., on April 4, 2018. Bob Riha Jr./Reuters

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will issue more than $118 million in grants to improve roadway safety in the United States, boost commercial vehicle enforcement, and offer high-quality training for military veterans entering the trucking industry, the Department of Transportation (DOT) said in a statement on Dec. 30.

The FMCSA grants “direct critical resources to state and local partners to reduce crashes through data-driven enforcement,” DOT said.

“The investments also bolster the integrity of the Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) system to ensure only qualified drivers are getting behind the wheel,” it added.

Of the $118 million, $71.6 million will be set aside for high-priority grants to support local and state enforcement efforts, such as reducing commercial motor vehicle crashes, conducting awareness campaigns on unsafe driving in high-risk crash corridors, and deploying new technologies to ensure compliance with safety rules.

FMCSA will award $43.8 million as CDL program implementation grants, according to the department. These grants aid states in complying with federal rules and ensure that the process of issuing CDL remains “secure, accurate, and resistant to fraud.”

“At both the national and state levels, agencies responsible for any component of the CDL program can use funding to strengthen compliance oversight, provide training to prevent the masking of driving violations, and implement solutions that improve the timeliness of conviction processing between courts and state systems,” DOT said.

In August 2025, an illegal immigrant was accused of causing a crash that killed three people in Florida. A month later, another illegal immigrant was arrested for an accident that ended up causing critical injuries to a 5-year-old girl.

Finally, $3.4 million will be distributed as Commercial Motor Vehicle Operator Safety Training grants to support current and former military personnel and their families, the department said.

The grants will be used to provide the individuals with “high-quality, safety-focused commercial driver training,” according to DOT.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, our department’s number one mission is to ensure that every American gets home safely,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.

“We’re backing aggressive enforcement and empowering states to keep unqualified, unvetted drivers off the road, investing in state-of-the-art technology to make our roads safer, and taking care of veterans interested in a career in trucking.”

FMCSA grants are part of the Trump administration’s push to tighten safety regulations in the American trucking industry.

In April 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing Duffy to ensure that only commercial truck drivers meeting English-language proficiency standards remain in service.

In a Dec. 10, 2025, post on X, Duffy said that more than 9,500 truck drivers had been taken off the road for failing to meet English-proficiency rules.

On Dec. 23, 2025, Duffy said he’ll ensure the Transportation Department does not fund states jeopardizing roadway safety.

Legal Challenges

The Trump administration’s actions have faced challenges in California.

After a federal audit found that 17,000 trucking licenses were illegally issued in California, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles issued cancellation letters last month.

In late December 2025, the Sikh Coalition, which represents around 20,000 immigrant drivers and business owners in California, filed a lawsuit against the action.

The lawsuit argued that canceling licenses would remove thousands of drivers from the roads and disrupt supply chains and services.

“This action was taken as a result of pressure from the federal government; unfortunately, the CA-DMV has thus far failed to provide any recourse or means for drivers to correct these issues,” said a Dec. 23 statement from the Sikh Coalition, referring to the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

“By ejecting these drivers from the workforce without allowing for any sort of solution, the CA-DMV is discriminating against them on the basis of their immigration status.”

On Dec. 30, California announced that it would delay revoking the 17,000 CDLs until March.

In a Dec. 31 post on X, Duffy warned against such an action.

“The deadline to revoke illegally issued, unvetted foreign trucker licenses is still January 5,” he wrote.

“California does NOT have an ‘extension’ to keep breaking the law and putting Americans at risk on the roads. Miss the deadline, Gavin, and the @USDOT will act—including cutting nearly $160 million in federal funding,” he said, referring to California Gov. Gavin Newsom.