From Dallas Express · Dallas Express · · 2m
Half of Texas CDL files checked had violations
Federal auditors flagged 60 of 123 sampled Texas non-domiciled trucking licenses, and most of the errors were expiration dates.
In brief
Federal auditors flagged 60 of 123 sampled Texas non-domiciled trucking licenses, and most of the errors were expiration dates. The 49% figure is a sample of 123 files, not a verdict on every commercial license Texas issues, and the biggest fault was a manual process leaving licenses valid far longer than federal…
Sixty files, one bad number
Federal auditors found violations in 60 of 123 Texas non-domiciled CDL files, or 49% of the sample. That is not 49% of every commercial license Texas issues.
“That is 49% of the sample, not 49% of every non-domiciled CDL or every commercial license issued in Texas.”
What a non-domiciled CDL is
These are Texas commercial licenses for drivers whose permanent legal home is elsewhere. Eligibility rests on proof of lawful U.S. presence, and the license cannot outlast that authorization.
Expiration dates were the fault
All 60 flagged files had validity-period problems. A failed manual process at Texas left the standard five- or eight-year expiry on 56 licenses instead of the shorter federal term.
Four files, different problems
Texas processed three applications while employment-authorization checks were still pending and accepted unacceptable documents on a fourth. The letter does not say those applicants lacked lawful status.
Fixes ordered, outcomes unclear
FMCSA told DPS to review every unexpired credential and void the noncompliant ones. Nine were corrected or reissued, a tenth was shortened but still ran past the driver's work authorization.
6,407 privileges revoked
Texas halted non-domiciled CDL transactions in September 2025 and had revoked 6,407 commercial-driving privileges by May 2026. Public records do not link that total to the 123-file sample.
A separate crash, outside the sample
A 2021 licensing error gave Solomun Weldekeal-Araya a CDL through 2030 on an application good only to 2022. He is charged over a 2025 I-35 crash in Austin that killed five, and is presumed innocent.
Other states, not comparable
New York hit 53.5% and California 26.2% in their own samples. FMCSA used different review periods and selection methods, so the numbers cannot be ranked against each other.
The bottom line
The 49% figure is a sample of 123 files, not a verdict on every commercial license Texas issues, and the biggest fault was a manual process leaving licenses valid far longer than federal rules allow.
