Senate Passes Crackdown On Undocumented Truckers

By Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida

TALLAHASSEE — Trucking companies would have to pay a hefty civil penalty to get their vehicles back when drivers are found to be undocumented immigrants, under a bill passed by the Senate on Friday.

The proposal (SB 86), which passed on a 29-5 vote, came about in response to a deadly crash last August on the Treasure Coast.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has highlighted the issue but the House hasn’t advanced its version of the bill (HB 1247) with one week remaining in the regular legislative session.  

“The purpose of the bill is to remove imminent hazards from our highways and to discourage those who would use illegals to operate commercial vehicles in Florida,” said bill sponsor Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville.

The measure directs law enforcement officers to take truck drivers determined to be undocumented immigrants into custody and help transfer them to federal immigration officials. Also, it would require impounding trucks driven by undocumented immigrants, with a $50,000 civil penalty applied to the motor carrier company. 

The bill was part of a state and federal response to semi-tractor trailer driver Harjinder Singh, a native of India, who was arrested in August following a crash that allegedly stemmed from him attempting a U-turn on Florida’s Turnpike in St. Lucie County. Three people died in the crash.

Singh reportedly was eligible for a non-domiciled commercial driver’s license as he held a valid employment authorization document. However, he was issued a standard commercial driver’s license in the state of Washington in 2023 and subsequently issued a proper non-domiciled commercial driver’s license in California.

While in Yulee on Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis noted that Florida and the Trump Administration are working to halt states from issuing licenses to people in foreign languages.

“How ridiculous is it that you’re doing this and you can’t even read the street signs,” DeSantis said. “We need to make sure that our people are engaged in this. Those are going to be the people that will be the most productive.”

On Feb. 6, the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles ended exams for most non-commercial driver classifications in Spanish and Haitian Creole.

Under Gaetz’ proposal, the vehicle would be impounded until the penalty is paid or bond is posted. The highway safety department could also issue a service order to prohibit the carrier from operating commercial vehicles in the state.

Florida law already declares invalid a driver’s license issued by another state to an individual unable to prove a lawful presence in the U.S.

Also, the highway safety department is prohibited from issuing a commercial driver’s license to anyone who is not a resident of Florida.