FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL — Two Indiana Republicans introduced an effort to force states to reform the commercial driving licensing process and bar commercial driver licenses, or CDLs for short, from falling into the hands of illegal immigrants.
Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., introduced her version of “Dalilah’s Law” in the House on Wednesday. The legislation is named in honor of five-year-old Dalilah Coleman, who was nearly killed after being struck by an 18-wheeler after the illegal immigrant driver ran a stop sign.
Houchin’s legislation pairs with a Senate bill introduced by Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., last week. Banks wrote in a press release that “Americans are paying the price” because illegal drivers are “being handed commercial driver’s licenses like candy.”
The Daily Signal reported on Tuesday that Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., introduced similar legislation under the same name. Barr did not respond to the Daily Signal’s request for comment.
“Families should never fear who is behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound truck on our highways,” Houchin told The Daily Signal. “The Dalilah Law ensures commercial driver’s licenses are limited to individuals who are lawfully present in the United States and able to meet the safety standards required to operate these massive vehicles.”
Rep. Vince Fong, R-Calif., who is cosponsoring the legislation, told The Daily Signal that Dalilah’s tragedy “could have been prevented if California did not grant commercial driver’s licenses to those in our country illegally.”
“Politics should never be put ahead of public safety,” Fong added.
Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., echoed his colleagues’ remarks and told The Daily Signal that “he is proud to support this bill to strengthen highway safety, restore accountability, and honor Dalilah and her family by working to prevent tragedies like this from happening again.”
Coleman was recognized by President Donald Trump during his State of the Union address on Feb. 24, and the president called on Congress to ban illegal immigrants from commercial truck driving.
“Many, if not most, illegal aliens do not speak English and cannot read even the most basic road signs as to direction, speed, danger, or location,” the president said. “That’s why tonight, I’m calling on Congress to pass what we will call the Dalilah Law, barring any state from granting commercial driver’s licenses to illegal aliens.”
The National Conference of State Legislatures noted that approximately 1 million CDL’s have been administered to illegal immigrants since 2013.
The bill text says that the law would prohibit the “issuance of CDL’s to individuals who are not citizens, lawful permanent residents, or holders of certain work visas.” The bill also mandates each state’s Secretary of State to “disqualify for life” any individual who is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States from operating a commercial vehicle.
If enacted, the bill will reform the CDL licensing process by ensuring that those who pass the certification are “proficient in the English language.”
Gordon McGill, a 28-year veteran of the trucking industry, recently told The Daily Signal that instead of issuing commercial driver’s licenses with qualified and well-trained American drivers, states have outsourced CDL’s to “unqualified illegals” who settled for a decreased wage.
“They’re just letting everybody get CDLs, mainly immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers,” Magill stated.
