The state of Minnesota is at risk of losing $30 million in federal funding if it doesn’t fix illegally issued commercial driver’s licenses, the Trump administration announced this week.
An audit by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found that one third of the non-domiciled CDLs issued by the Democrat-led state were illegal. The U.S. Department of Transportation is giving the state 30 days to come into compliance or lose out on the federal highway funding.
🚨🚨It just keeps getting worse for @GovTimWalz.
Just one day after 400 BRAVE employees from @MinnesotaDHS exposed “massive fraud,” @USDOT has discovered that ONE THIRD of non-domiciled CDLs were issued ILLEGALLY in the state.
MINNESOTA: You’re on notice. You have 30 days to… https://t.co/EDsPx9lQKg
— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) December 2, 2025
“Our audit exposes yet another example of foreigners taking advantage of Minnesota services under Governor Walz’s watch,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement. “Minnesota failed to follow the law and illegally doled out trucking licenses to unsafe, unqualified non-citizens – endangering American families on the road. That abuse stops now under the Trump Administration.”
“The Department will withhold funding if Minnesota continues this reckless behavior that puts non-citizens gaming the system ahead of the safety of Americans,” he added.
During President Trump's White House Cabinet meeting Tuesday morning, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy blasted Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, saying he gave 33% of CDL licenses unlawfully to people that shouldn't be driving big rigs on American roads. pic.twitter.com/qddEiVGcNC
— FOX 9 (@FOX9) December 2, 2025
The Trump administration has sought to crack down on CDLs issued to illegal immigrants since a string of fatal accidents caused by commercial truck drivers who in some cases couldn’t speak English. The FMCSA found that California, Colorado, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington were among other states issuing CDLs “not consistent with federal regulations.”
“FMCSA found that [the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Driver and Vehicle Services] issued non-domiciled CDLs that extend beyond the expiration of drivers’ lawful presence in the United States [and] issued non-domiciled CDLs to citizens of Mexico not present in the United States under the DACA program…”said a letter from FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs to Gov. Tim Walz and Minnesota Department of Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson.
DOT ordered the state to stop issuing non-domiciled CDLs and revoke any noncompliant non-domiciled CDLs.
“Minnesota is openly and blatantly defying our rules, plain and simple,” Barrs added in a statement. “Under the Trump Administration, states have two choices: meet our standards or face the consequences. Following the law is not optional.”
