California Gov. Gavin Newsom (left) and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy (right). On Wednesday, Duffy said he will withhold $40 million from California over its failure to enforce English language rules for commercial truck drivers. (Ayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images (left); Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images (right))
"California is the only state in the nation that refuses to ensure big rig drivers can read our road signs and communicate with law enforcement. This is a fundamental safety issue that impacts you and your family on America’s roads," Duffy said.
"The Golden State thinks it’s OK to ignore @USDOT English language requirements for truckers. You can play all the games you want, but not at the expense of American lives," Duffy wrote on X.
Duffy said the truck driver in the Florida crash should not have been given a commercial license because of his immigration status.
Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, told Fox News Digital that California commercial truck drivers have a lower crash rate than the national average.
Harjinder Singh, a 28-year-old illegal alien from India, was arrested on August 16, 2025. Singh allegedly attempted to make an unauthorized U-turn in Ft. Pierce, Florida on Tuesday, resulting in a crash that killed three people. (United States Marshals Service)
Singh, an Indian citizen, is being held without bond after being charged with three state counts of vehicular homicide and immigration violations.
Investigators said he failed an English proficiency test but was still issued a license to drive trucks. Duffy and Florida officials have blamed California as well as Washington state for issuing him a commercial driver’s license.
However, California officials said Singh had a valid work permit at the time. Authorities said he entered the United States illegally from Mexico in 2018.
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To have the funding reinstated, California must enforce the English rules and ensure that state inspectors test truck drivers’ English skills during roadside inspections and remove anyone from the road who fails.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Louis Casiano is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to louis.casiano@fox.com.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-administration-withholds-40m-california-trucker-english-proficiency-rules