Federal trucking regulators are tightening English-language enforcement for commercial drivers, and some first-generation immigrant truckers are being hit hard. A 60-year-old driver identified as John Kim, who has 17 years of experience, says he received a ticket during a late-July California Highway Patrol stop over English communication issues and is now facing possible suspension of his commercial driver’s license.
Kim passed the oral portion of the English assessment but failed the written test, which led to the case. His license-suspension notice, however, listed a physical qualification issue rather than a failure on the English test, adding another layer of confusion to the process.
The English requirement itself is not new. Federal rules have long required commercial truck drivers to understand road signs in English and answer questions from enforcement officers. What has changed is how aggressively it is being enforced. The crackdown intensified after President Donald Trump issued an executive order last April reversing easing measures from the previous administration, and since April this year, roadside inspections have included a more specific procedure for checking English ability.
Drivers who previously could take the commercial driver’s license written exam in their native language must now take it in English only. Kim says he has been unable to drive a truck for nearly a month, leaving him under serious financial strain.
