FMSCA takes hundreds of drivers off the road for inadequate English skills, wants California to crack down harder
November 4, 2025
In April, President Trump issued an executive order instructing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to start enforcing English language requirements for drivers by imposing English Language Proficiency (ELP) tests and taking drivers out of service if they fail these tests.
The executive order directed FMCSA to act within 60 days and FMCSA has prepared its regulations and started enforcement.
FMCSA data for June and July shows that the FMSCA is aggressively language testing and has begun taking drivers who fail the test off the road. In 2024 only one driver was taken out of service based on inadequate English proficiency. In 2025 over 7,000 inspections have already been conducted with over 1,200 drivers taken out of service for failure. Over four hundred of those drivers were in Western States including California and Nevada.
This test is not part of Homeland Security/ICE immigration law enforcement practice: it is a regulation of drivers enforced by FMCSA inspectors and—like other DOT regulations—drivers can prepare for these new tests and avoid being taken out of service.
ELP tests are performed in two parts: conversational English and reading English signs. ELP FMCSA inspectors are authorized to test when they suspect drivers do not understand their English questions or instructions. This is a subjective test based on the inspector’s intuition and it should be assumed that inspectors’ “intuition” will be influenced by racial profiling and FMCSA is not providing specific guidelines regarding who will be subject to ELP tests.
However, a driver does not have to be fluent in English to pass the test—the test is only for the basic English deemed necessary to read and understand road signs and fill out basic reports and records related to their truck and its load.
If an FMCSA inspector suspects the driver does not understand English they may ask the driver questions about where they are coming from, where they are going, how long they have been driving, what their driver’s license says, what their shipping papers say, or about vehicle equipment subject to inspection. Drivers must be prepared to comfortably answer these kinds of questions in English if approached by an inspector. Using notes, cue cards, or smartphone apps to assist in talking to inspectors is not permitted so drivers need to be ready to talk without reading off anything.
If a driver passes the first phase of the ELP test, FMCSA inspectors will proceed the second phase: English road signs. The exact sign test is not publicly disclosed, but expect questions about signs with more English words on them like Slower Traffic Keep Right, Road Closed Ahead, or Yield to Uphill Traffic.
Drivers should expect FMCSA inspectors to ask more questions when they think a driver’s English skills are limited.
What can drivers whose first language is not English or who struggle with reading English do to prepare for this testing and avoid being pulled off the job? Work on your spoken English fluency on your own or, better yet, in a class. Learn how to read English by starting with books written for children. However, don’t wait: your job as a driver depends on your ability to show an inspector that you can speak, read and understand basic English.
