Trump admin shutters more than 100 driving schools as it works to clean up trucking industry
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said on Monday that the administration had shut down numerous driving schools over allegedly dispensing drivers’ licenses to illegal aliens. More schools were also exposed for having inadequate driver training mechanisms.
by Summer Lane | August 31, 2026
During a press conference on Monday, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, flanked by U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, announced the emergency executive shutdown of 110 driving schools in the U.S.
“These are driving schools that account for 5,000 of the violations for English proficiency – what I mean by that is, you have to speak English to operate a commercial motor vehicle,” Secretary Duffy stated.
He said that the schools that were shut down were aware of this rule but continued to pass drivers who were unable to meet that requirement. “…That rule has been in place for decades,” Duffy noted.
Duffy also said that 160 additional schools were shut down over alleged issues like: facilities that “certified that they are qualified to train truck drivers,” but did not have adequate space to provide for that testing and training – as well as unlicensed truck drivers inexplicably training other drivers.
“You have fraud throughout the school system,” Duffy explained.
Duffy pointed out that these alleged violations could not be prosecuted at the Department of Transportation, but deferred to eight U.S. attorneys with the Department of Justice, some of whom who were standing behind him at the podium. “It’s so important, and none of this would happen but for the task force bringing a holistic approach to fraud in government,” he said.
The secretary was referring to the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, which has been instrumental in spearheading the exposure of fraud and corruption through many government agencies.
The bottom line, Duffy said, was that if “you’re here illegally and you can’t speak the language, and you’re not well-trained, you don’t deserve to be in a big rig driving on American roads, endangering American citizens.”
Duffy signed an order in May 2025 enacting this new guidance for truckers, building upon President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at strengthening highway safety by ensuring that all commercial drivers are not only qualified but proficient in English.
Photo: Adobe Stock
