Texas officials announced effective immediately that all commercial driver license and commercial learner permit exams in the state will be administered only in English, aligning with a federal push to enforce language proficiency standards across the trucking industry.
The change follows accelerating federal action by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. FMCSA published updated enforcement guidance establishing a two-step evaluation process for roadside inspectors assessing driver English proficiency: a driver interview and a highway traffic sign recognition test. Drivers who fail either component can be placed out of service.
The policy shift stems from a congressional mandate signed as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026. The legislation requires FMCSA to update regulations so that failure to meet English proficiency standards under 49 CFR Section 391.11(b)(2) triggers an immediate out-of-service order. The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance added English proficiency to its North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria in 2025.
Enforcement began in earnest during Operation SafeDRIVE, a three-day inspection event held January 13 through 15, 2026, across 26 states and Washington, D.C. Of 8,215 inspections conducted, 704 drivers received out-of-service orders, with approximately 500 related to English language proficiency.
Industry observers note the rule change is expected to create short-term driver availability pressure. FMCSA has estimated that the non-domiciled CDL rule could remove 194,000 drivers from the active pool, adding strain to an already capacity-constrained freight environment.
Source: KWTX -- https://www.kwtx.com/2026/06/01/effective-immediately-all-texas-cdl-commercial-learner-permit-exams-will-only-be-administered-english/