The DC Circuit will weigh Tuesday whether to greenlight a Trump administration rule that effectively bans nearly 200,000 foreign drivers from holding commercial drivers licenses in an effort it says is needed to make roadways safer.
The rule restricts eligibility for asylum seekers and recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals who have lived in the US for most of their lives. It would also place stricter requirements on foreign-born commercial drivers to prove work authorization, and ask states to check records in drivers’ home countries.
But the requirements issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in February have no basis in safety, say labor unions and drivers arguing against the rule before the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
“It’s a nationalist project they’re undertaking to remove foreign nationals from the workforce in the trucking industry,” said Munmeeth Soni, legal director at the Sikh Coalition, which is backing the challenge.
The rule is part of a broader crackdown on foreign drivers involving the Department of Transportation, which includes the FMCSA, and the Department of Homeland Security. Those efforts include i...