Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Monday shared that President Donald Trump would sign an executive order returning the English language proficiency requirements detailed in 49 CFR 391.11(b)(2) to an out-of-service violation.
The move, essentially, seeks to bolster penalties for commercial motor vehicle drivers who can't "read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs and signals in the English language, to respond to official inquiries, and to make entries on reports and records," according to the regulation.
[Related: Do drivers need to learn English?]
In 2016, an FMCSA memo to state enforcement agencies changed the guidance around English language proficiency enforcement after the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance the prior year removed it from the out of service criteria. The change allowed for drivers to communicate with inspectors using translation aides, while underscoring that the still-existing violation was no longer an OOS violation.
Arkansas earlier this month passed a state bill imposing penalties on commercial drivers who lack English language proficiency that was backed by the Arkansas Trucking Association and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.
[Related: Arkansas to fine drivers $500 if they can't speak English proficiently]
OOIDA in March petitioned the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance to put English language proficiency back in the OOS criteria, and CVSA told Overdrive it would discuss the petition at the ongoing Workshop meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana. CVSA, an international group made up of 70 member organizations from three countries, typically puts petitions to a vote.
It's unclear how an executive order from a U.S. president might impact the governance of an international alliance like CVSA, but President Trump's order is expected to make it clear that "English is a non-negotiable safety requirement for professional drivers," according to draft text published by the Brietbart outlet and shared by DOT Secretary Duffy.
Drivers "should be able to read and understand traffic signs, communicate with traffic safety officers, border patrol, agricultural checkpoints, and cargo weight-limit station personnel, and provide and receive feedback and directions in English,” the document cited by Brietbart notes.
As part of the EO, Trump will direct Secretary Duffy “to rescind and replace guidance to strengthen inspection procedures for compliance with English proficiency requirements,” per Brietbart.
The EO "mandates revising out-of-service criteria to ensure drivers violating English proficiency rules are placed out-of-service, enhancing roadway safety," the document goes on.
[Related: Truck drivers' English language proficiency: The inspections problem]
Before FMCSA relaxed enforcement guidance in 2016, RigDig Business Intelligence's mining of federal data for Overdrive's CSA's Data Trail series often showed more than 80,000 English-language violations logged annually by inspectors. FMCSA's Analysis and Information website today illustrates the fall-off of enforcement -- between 7,800 and 10,000 English-language violations for years 2021 through 2024. None of those would be out of service violations for the driver under current OOS rules.
Owner-operator Lisa Schmitt, who team-drives with her husband Lee, a longtime Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration petitioner on a campaign to lead the agency, expected the order would have a "huge effect on safety. Stopping trucks to enforce English will get more unsafe drivers off the road," said Schmitt.
OOIDA applauded the administration's move, with President Todd Spencer saying the organization "strongly supports President Trump’s decision to resume enforcement of English proficiency requirements for commercial drivers.
"Basic English skills are essential for reading critical road signs, understanding emergency instructions, and interacting with law enforcement. Road signs save lives -- but only when they’re understood."
Spencer added the executive order was a "welcome step toward restoring a common-sense safety standard.”
Shannon Everett, co-founder of the American Truckers United group, who petitioned FMCSA for the return of 391.11(b)(2) to the OOS criteria, was similarly thankful for the move, he said. "This will be a huge step forward in protecting our roadways."
