WASHINGTON — The Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC) is filing a new Petition for Review with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit to compel the decertification of CDL program authority in New York and California.
According to the court filing, SBTC is seeking review of:
- Respondent Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) April 16 “Notice of Final Determination of Substantial Noncompliance” with 49 USC Chapter 313 to New York State insofar as failure to decertify New York’s Commercial Driver License (CDL) issuing authority violates 49 U.S. Code § 31312
- FMCSA’s constructive denial of Petitioner’s May 27, 2025 Petition for Decertification Order against the states of New York, California, et al.
According to the SBTC, Federal law under 49 U.S. Code § 31312 grants not only authority to the Secretary to decertify states’ CDL-issuing authority, but actually imposes a duty on the Secretary to decertify states CDL-issuing authority (by virtue of the word “shall” in the statute) whenever the Secretary determines that a state is in “substantial noncompliance with this chapter.”
Substantial Noncompliance
According to SBTC, in General —If the Secretary of Transportation determines that a State is in substantial noncompliance with this chapter, the Secretary shall issue an order to—
- Prohibit that State from carrying out licensing procedures under this chapter; and
- Prohibit that State from issuing any commercial driver’s licenses until such time the Secretary determines such State is in substantial compliance with this chapter.
“In the aftermath of conducting 2025 annual CDL program compliance audits, Respondent FMCSA did preliminarily determine that 24 states plus the District of Columbia were in substantial non-compliance with 49 USC Chapter 313 and issued notices thereof demanding correction by those states,” SBTC said. “Two states were issued final notices of substantial non-compliance, California and New York, certain states rectified their non-compliance to the Respondents’ satisfaction, and numerous jurisdictions remain pending final disposition. It is New York and California that Petitioner takes issue with in this Petition for Review.”
Non-Domiciled CDL Review
According to SBTC, the Secretary has issued the aforementioned final notices of substantial non-compliance with 49 USC Chapter 313, which, under 49 U.S. Code § 31312, required the Secretary to decertify the CDL-issuing authority of California and New York.
“Congress clearly intended the Secretary to issue decertification orders as the word ‘shall’ in the statute is a clear directive that does not leave the matter subject to executive discretion,” SBTC said. “The finding of substantial non-compliance with 49 USC Chapter 313 necessarily triggers a duty to decertify by law.”
Decertification
“We ask for a review of both final findings of non-compliance in the context of the agency failing to process our May 27, 2025 Petition for Decertification Orders against numerous states citied therein, including, but not limited to California and New York, as a matter of our rights to Federal procedural due process under the Fifth Amendment and as a matter of administrative law under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA),” SBTC said.
Specifically, 5 USC §555, which holds:
- A person compelled to appear in person before an agency or representative thereof is entitled to be accompanied, represented, and advised by counsel or, if permitted by the agency, by other qualified representative. A party is entitled to appear in person or by or with counsel or other duly qualified representative in an agency proceeding. So far as the orderly conduct of public business permits, an interested person may appear before an agency or its responsible employees for the presentation, adjustment, or determination of an issue, request, or controversy in a proceeding, whether interlocutory, summary, or otherwise, or in connection with an agency function. With due regard for the convenience and necessity of the parties or their representatives and within a reasonable time, each agency shall proceed to conclude a matter presented to it. This subsection does not grant or deny a person who is not a lawyer the right to appear for or represent others before an agency or in an agency proceeding…
- Prompt notice shall be given of the denial in whole or in part of a written application, petition, or other request of an interested person made in connection with any agency proceeding. Except in affirming a prior denial or when the denial is self-explanatory, the notice shall be accompanied by a brief statement of the grounds for denial.
Failure to Reply
“More than one year has now passed and the Respondents have not acknowledged our May 27, 2025 Petition for Decertification Order,” SBTC said. “They have not responded to our requests for status updates. Petitioner contends that Respondents have failed to conclude this matter brought before it within a reasonable time as required by the APA and the Court should now grant this petition with respect to ordering the Secretary to decertify the CDL issuing-authority of California and New York because within this year period, the Respondents, we contend in further of our petition for decertification, proceeded with the process nonetheless, made the required final finding of non-compliance with 49 USC Chapter 313 as Petitioner alleged, and decertification orders against California and New York are warranted and due as a matter of law.”
Fatal Virginia Bus Crash
SBTC cites the recent 5-person Virginia bus fatality involving a NYSDMV licensed driver who allegedly does not speak English as required by 49 CFR 391.11 as the impetus for the Court to act:
“SBTC petitioned the U.S. Attorney General to conduct RICO investigations into California in August and again in September of 2025 (Exhibit D) and New York et al (Exhibit E) in October of 2025, all within the past year pointing to grant fraud and intentional violation of CDL Program standards by these states,” SBTC said. “SBTC requested Federal RICO investigations targeting California Department of Motor Vehicles and New York Department of Motor Vehicles for racketeering and fraud against the Federal government with respect to its participation in the Federal CDL Grant Funding Program overseen by Respondent FMCSA, an Operating Administration of Respondent United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) headed by the Secretary.”
SBTC alleged that CA and NY state officials are knowingly and intentionally enabling the violation of 49 CFR 383.71(b)(9), which states:
- Initial Commercial Driver’s License. Prior to obtaining a CDL, a person must meet all of the following requirements:
- The person must provide proof of citizenship or lawful permanent residency as specified in Table 1 of this section, or be registered under paragraph (f) of this section.
“We stated we believe this matter is worthy of criminal RICO probes insofar as CA & NY are, we believe, intentionally and knowingly defrauding the Federal government each time the states issue a CDL to an illegal immigrant since the state gets federal funding under the CDL program in violation of their certified assurances and the Respondents’ good faith grant contract warnings to these states that failure to comply with Federal regulations may constitute false claims under the False Claims Act,” SBTC said. “We have suggested these schemes to defraud appear to be clear violations of 18 U.S.C. § 1031 and/or 18 U.S.C. § 371.”
According to SBTC, the Respondents, in turn, have indeed found California to be in non-compliance with CDL Program standards related to non-domicile permits and CDLs at a rate of about 25% as of the 2025 program sample target audit. New York’s non-compliance rate was found to be over 55%.
“Public safety and the law now require these states be decertified, yet the Respondents refuse to do so,” SBTC said.
A Duty to Comply
“In the post Chevron era, this Court no longer owes deference to the Respondents and has authority to order the Respondents to comply with the duty imposed upon them by Congress,” SBTC said. “We respectfully pray the court will order the Respondents to immediately issue decertification orders to California and New York pursuant to their duty under 49 U.S. Code § 31312 in accordance with their Congressional mandate in the interest of public safety before any more motorists are killed on America’s Highways.”
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
