President Trump Signs Executive Order Mandating English Proficiency for Commercial Truck Drivers

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (May 8, 2025) - On April 28, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order declaring mandatory English language proficiency for truck drivers in the U. S.The order rescinds and replaces the 2016 Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration memo that previously overlooked the lack of English language proficiency as a cause for an out-of-service designation. Now, the FMCSA has been directed to be more stringent in enforcing the standard of English proficiency in commercial truck drivers. President Trump cites that common sense dictates truck drivers should be able to communicate with other drivers and the public in English as well as understand English traffic signs.

Current Regulation vs. New Executive Order

The current regulation, 49 CFR 391.11(b)(2), already requires that commercial vehicle drivers be able to read and speak English sufficiently in order to converse with the general public, understand highway traffic signs and signals, respond to official inquiries, and make entries on reports and records. However, enforcement of this requirement has been lax since the 2016 FMCSA memo, which allowed drivers to use tools like interpreters and smartphone applications to facilitate communication. The new executive order mandates stricter enforcement, ensuring that drivers who fail to meet English proficiency standards are placed out-of-service, which could cause significant disruption to the trucking industry.

Potential Driver Shortage

An additional source of disruption this order may cause is a potential shortage of drivers. The trucking industry has faced recent driver shortages, leading companies to hire capable individuals who do not speak English as their first language. This new order may curb this practice, potentially exacerbating the driver shortage issue.

It is expected that the English language requirements in 49 CFR Part 383 “Commercial Driver’s License Standards” will be harmonized with those in 49 CFR Part 391 “Qualifications of Drivers and Longer Combination Vehicle (LCV) Driver Instructors” for consistency. The Secretary of Transportation, through the FMCSA, will begin implementing this order within 60 days, by late June 2025.

For more information about the executive order, contact the authors of this alert. Visit our Transportation Practice page to learn more about our capabilities in this area.

Authors:

Paul Gamm, Partner

Kyle Hollander, Associate