Texas cracks down on truckers who can't speak English
Texas truck drivers now must speak English
Texas is cracking down on truck drivers who can?t speak English. Gov. Greg Abbott said it?s about safety, but critics worry it could hurt the trucking industry.
DALLAS - Texas is cracking down on truck drivers who can’t speak English. Gov. Greg Abbott said it’s about safety, but critics worry it could hurt the trucking industry.
Texas Trucking Language Policy
What we know:
Abbott is making it clear that if you are a truck driver, you must be able to speak English to drive on Texas roads. No exceptions.
The governor has directed the Texas Department of Public Safety to run zero-tolerance language checks on all commercial drivers in the state.
Abbott enforcing English language requirements for all commercial drivers in Texas
DPS has also been ordered to stop issuing new intrastate commercial licenses to drivers who cannot communicate in English.
What they're saying:
The Texas Trucking Association is backing the move, saying English proficiency is essential for safety.
"When drivers cannot read and understand road signs, weather alerts, or critical digital instructions near bridges, overpasses, or construction zones, it puts every motorist at risk," TXTA President and CEO John D. Esparza said in part in a statement.
Critics warn the crackdown could deepen labor shortages the trucking industry is already facing.
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Big picture view:
This isn’t just a Texas issue. It’s all part of a bigger crackdown.
The U.S. Department of Transportation rolled out its enforcement plan earlier this summer after a fatal crash in Florida, where three people were killed.
The driver in that case was accused of not being able to read or speak English and therefore was unable to understand road signs.
"Now, when we did that, there was a lot of press that complained to us that we were being unfair to people, that we were being mean to people. And what we said was no. This is a safety issue. Making sure drivers of very heavy 80,000-pound rigs can speak the language is truly a critical safety issue," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
Trump administration to enforce law requiring truck drivers to speak English
The Trump administration took steps on Tuesday to enforce a federal law that requires truck drivers in the country to speak English.
Federal transportation officials in Washington have already warned states that if they don’t follow that same rule, they could lose millions in funding.
DOT said California, Washington, and New Mexico are already on notice. They were given 30 days to comply.
"We do not want to penalize the states. We want the states to comply and to enforce the English language proficiency requirement, which is directly related not only to the safety of the citizens of their states but the citizens of all the states around all of the United States," said Jesse Ellison, the FMCSA Chief Counsel.
Dig deeper:
Since late June, Texas DPS has cited nearly 450 drivers for failing English requirements. Most of them were licensed in Mexico.
Abbott said from now on, DPS won’t issue intrastate licenses to anyone who can’t speak English.
As of right now, it’s not clear how that will be tested.
The Source: The information in this story comes from Gov. Greg Abbott's office, comments made by U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, comments from the Texas Trucking Association, and past news coverage.