In a bid to counteract new regulations that could impede the economic progress of nearly 200,000 immigrants, the City of New York has stepped forward to challenge a federal rule that restricts asylum seekers and other legally present non-citizens from holding non-domiciled commercial driver's licenses (CDL). The rule, instated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, has come under fire for its potential to exacerbate the ongoing commercial driver shortage and impact essential services. Citing the importance of an inclusive economy, Mayor Eric Adams emphasized the critical role immigrants play in the workforce. "Our administration has broken jobs record after jobs record because we were focused on delivering an inclusive economy that works for everyone," Adams said, as per an announcement by the NYC Mayor's Office.
The City's opposition to the rule manifested through an amicus brief filed as part of a coalition comprising other cities and a county. The brief supports a motion to stay the rule, arguing that it unjustly burdens local governments by magnifying driver shortages that affect public transportation, and by extension, public safety. It also contends that the U.S. Department of Transportation didn't provide sufficient justification for bypassing the notice, and comment period normally required for such rulings. Together with San Francisco, Cambridge, Albany, and Montgomery County, the City of New York stands united against a rule whose evidence, according to New York City Corporation Counsel Muriel Goode-Trufant, is "arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act." "This unlawful federal rule not only inflicts needless hardship upon hundreds of thousands of immigrants who are in the country legally trying to build better lives for themselves and their families, it also harms the broader public and should not stand," said Goode-Trufant, in words echoed by the NYC Mayor's Office.
The amicus brief, drafted by the Public Rights Project and Democracy Forward, details the potential ramifications of the ruling. It draws attention to a disturbing trend from 2022, where public bus services were significantly hampered, with a staggering 94 percent of transit agencies struggling to fill bus operator positions. This problem is only compounded by the new ruling, which strips non-domiciled CDL eligibility from all but a narrow subset of visa holders. The brief highlights the dependency of local governments on immigrant drivers for vital roadway safety functions, even in the face of pressing shortages.
This legal challenge is a pushback against an interim final rule, announced in September 2025 by the U.S. DOT, which limits non-domiciled CDL eligibility. The rule cited the involvement of five non-citizen drivers in accidents throughout 2025 as a basis for its action, a justification that petitioners find flimsy at best. The coalition backing the petitioners argues that citizenship status should not be conflated with driving competence, or road safety. Moreover, they contend that the additional financial burden of hiring new drivers and training, will fall heavily on local governments already struggling with scarce resources.
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