Court reviews CDL validity after work authorization expires

A federal appeals court is reviewing a dispute over whether commercial driver licenses can remain valid after a driver’s work authorization expires. The outcome will directly affect carriers and drivers who hold out-of-state commercial licenses.

The conflict started after federal officials announced they would withhold roughly $160 million in highway funds from California. They claimed the state failed to cancel about 20,000 out-of-state commercial licenses that were deemed illegal.

Federal lawyers argued that granting a long-term license when employment papers expire quickly makes no sense. They added that the funding penalty followed California’s delay in removing the licenses after initially agreeing to do so.

California representatives countered that federal statutes allow states to grant licenses for the longest permitted duration. They pointed out that many employment documents renewed automatically until 2025, so forcing drivers to visit the licensing office for each renewal would create excessive paperwork.

The three-judge panel will review the case before issuing a decision. Appeals courts usually take several months to rule. Carriers and drivers with out-of-state commercial licenses should monitor the outcome, as it could change how long those licenses remain valid.

Source: Land Line — https://landline.media/cdl-court-fight-centers-around-expiring-work-authorization/