Supreme Court rejects Florida suit against other states over immigrant truck drivers

Washington — The Supreme Court connected Tuesday rejected Florida's bid to record a suit against Washington and California for allegedly providing commercialized driver's licenses to motortruck drivers who are successful the U.S. illegally and not proficient successful English.

Florida sought to writer the 2 states pursuing a fatal clang connected a authorities road successful August 2025 that occurred erstwhile motortruck operator Harjinder Singh, an Indian nationalist who crossed into the U.S. from Mexico, attempted to marque an amerciable U-turn. State and national investigations showed that Singh apt could not work the roadworthy signs. He faces transgression charges and has pleaded not guilty.

The Department of Homeland Security and Florida officials said Singh had obtained commercialized driver's licenses from California and Washington.

In the long-shot bid for involution by the Supreme Court, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier claimed California and Washington ignored national information standards and migration instrumentality by allowing radical successful the U.S. illegally to thrust commercialized centrifugal vehicles "without due grooming oregon the quality to work roadworthy signs."

He asked the precocious tribunal to artifact the 2 states from issuing commercialized driver's licenses to individuals who are not U.S. citizens oregon lawful imperishable residents, and who don't conscionable national information requirements. 

"California's and Washington's determination to endanger their ain citizens is reprehensible. But commercialized drivers routinely transverse authorities lines, endangering citizens of different States," Uthmeier, a Republican, wrote, adding that those decisions pb to "mayhem" successful different states.

But officials from each of the 2 states rejected Florida's assertions. California Attorney General Rob Bonta told the Supreme Court successful a filing that its Department of Motor Vehicles verifies ineligible beingness utilizing a national database known arsenic SAVE and tests for English proficiency, arsenic required by authorities law. 

As to Singh, California officials said the state's DMV issued him a non-domiciled commercialized driver's licence lone aft complying with national and authorities regulations. They said helium applied for the licence successful July 2024 and provided an employment authorization document, which was verified done the national database.

"The allegations successful the projected ailment are notably lacking, arsenic Florida admits that it does not adjacent cognize however California's commercialized driver's licence programme works," Bonta said. "Its claims are based connected assumptions astir California instrumentality and signifier that are wrong: DMV requires verification of ineligible beingness and tests for English connection proficiency earlier issuing commercialized driver's licenses."

Washington officials, meanwhile, called Florida's projected suit a "political stunt," and noted that Uthmeier announced the suit connected Fox News. They claimed that Florida has improperly licensed "thousands" of commercialized drivers without grounds they talk English oregon fulfill residency requirements.

Washington officials wrote that authorities instrumentality requires applicants for a commercialized driver's licence to walk written cognition tests and skills tests that conscionable national standards, and requires applicants to reside successful Washington oregon beryllium different federally qualified.

"This quality is not astir boundaries oregon water; it is astir the contented of authorities policies," they wrote. "Even mounting that aside, Florida's claims are meritless."

They besides said that Singh did not person a valid commercialized driver's licence from Washington astatine the clip of the 2025 clang successful Florida.

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito said they would person allowed Florida to writer the 2 states, reiterating their presumption that the Supreme Court cannot garbage to perceive suits betwixt states.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has taken steps to ace down connected states that it says person issued commercialized driver's licenses to migrant motortruck drivers and has sought to withhold national backing to states that garbage to cancel licenses that it says were illegally issued.

President Trump signed an executive order successful April 2025 that reinforces a national instrumentality that requires commercialized motortruck drivers to work and talk English proficiently.