Eight people were arrested in Bay County, Florida, last month in connection with a scheme where DMV employees sold driver’s licenses to illegal aliens for cash – no tests, no questions asked. That case is just one example of a nationwide problem of illegal aliens obtaining driver’s licenses – a development that poses a major threat to both election integrity and public safety.
Authorities say undocumented immigrants traveled from across Florida to buy licenses from DMV employees who took cash in exchange for skipping required tests. Surveillance footage confirmed that individuals received driver’s licenses without completing the legally required tests. The arrests include both DMV workers and intermediaries, all now facing charges ranging from official misconduct to unlawful possession of a driver’s license.
“Florida’s sheriffs are on the front lines of our state’s fight against illegal immigration, and Sheriff Ford is rooting out the corruption they bring into our state,” Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said following the bust in Bay County, home to Panama City Beach. “We are going to find you, hold you accountable, and then send you back to where you came from.”
The Bay County case is just the latest example of a broader vulnerability in the nation’s licensing system – particularly when it comes to commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs), required to operate most semi-trucks and buses. In one recent case, a driver linked to a $1.6 million cargo heist had a California-issued CDL with the first name listed as “No Name Given.”
That story has placed heightened scrutiny on California’s license-issuing procedures in particular – and how those procedures threaten the sanctity of the ballot box. As election integrity activist Cleta Mitchell pointed out on X, “These same driver’s license agencies are registering people to vote. How much effort do you think they put into verifying citizenship of those they’re adding to CA voter rolls?”
Another significant danger of handing out driver’s licenses to unqualified illegal aliens is that many don’t have the requisite English language skills to safely operate a motor vehicle – a problem that is particularly terrifying when it comes to CDLs. A recent Overdrive survey found that 40 percent of respondents estimate more than a quarter of commercial drivers on American roads can’t meet the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s English language standards.
Truckers see the problem firsthand. Industry forums and Overdrive’s survey are filled with stories of English-speaking drivers unable to communicate at weigh stations, loading docks, or in emergencies. Some drivers describe the hazards of working alongside colleagues who can’t ask basic safety questions or understand routing instructions. Others point to operational slowdowns and confusion that ripple through the supply chain.
As one fleet owner responded to the Overdrive survey, “Every single day on the road you run into someone that can’t speak a word of English.”
In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at tightening the enforcement of English language requirements for commercial drivers. The order instructs the Department of Transportation to scrap previous guidance that had relaxed enforcement, requiring that drivers who fail English proficiency standards be taken off the road. It also calls for a review of state-issued commercial licenses, particularly those granted to non-citizens, to spot irregularities and close loopholes.
Directives under the Obama and Biden administrations effectively allowed English requirements to be ignored for CDL recipients, contributing to a dramatic rise in unqualified drivers. The new order directs federal officials to work with states to ensure that anyone behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle meets minimum standards, not just for language, but for basic competency and safety. Trump’s directive frames English fluency as a basic public safety measure, essential for reading signs, following instructions, and communicating with authorities.
But the problem of unqualified migrant drivers who shouldn’t have licenses in the first place is not limited to the trucking industry. It has also spilled over into local streets and neighborhoods, putting entire communities at risk.
In Springfield, Ohio, residents say an influx of Haitian migrants, many reportedly driving with minimal or no training, has led to a spike in crashes, injuries, and even fatalities, according to the New York Post. Residents report up to ten accidents a day and describe a city where “cars drive up into buildings and onto sidewalks.”
In December 2023, a 71-year-old woman in Springfield was killed while collecting her trash cans, struck by a Haitian migrant driver with expired plates who faced no charges. The woman was hit so hard that her socks were left on the pavement and her body was thrown across the street. The police report described debris scattered along the roadway and noted clumps of hair embedded in the car’s cracked windshield.
In August of that year, 11-year-old Aiden Clark was also killed after a 36-year-old Haitian migrant without a valid U.S. license caused the school bus he was riding to overturn, crushing him beneath the vehicle. The crash sent at least 20 other children to the hospital.
In Columbus, just an hour east of Springfield, more than 65 vehicles have crashed into buildings in 2025 alone.
Since late 2022, neighborhoods near migrant shelters in Staten Island, New York, have also seen a surge in unlicensed, unregistered drivers, turning quiet streets into a “demolition derby,” according to the Post. Calls for reform have grown, with residents urging lawmakers to require all new drivers, citizen or alien, to pass the same tests and meet the same standards.
While the Trump administration is working to deport illegal aliens and enforce the rules and regulations of the road, the problem ultimately starts at the local level with individual DMV offices. If someone can’t read road signs or hasn’t passed a basic competency test, safe driving is impossible. Until DMVs enforce the law, both public safety and trust in the system will remain at risk.
Sarah Katherine Sisk is a proud Hillsdale College alumna and a master’s student in economics at George Mason University. You can follow her on X @SKSisk76.
Well,it should not be much of a decision about what to do with the criminals that do this.This sounds like aiding and abedding other criminals.How about a fair trial and prison.
If this is happening in Florida just imagine how rampant it must be in California!!
It is definitely sad when government employees put GREED ahead than to do their jobs honestly and correctly.
Are we never going to stop hearing about corruption and crime that have been greatly increased because of the Biden regime opening our borders?? And the rotten radical liberals still are fighting President Trump’s efforts to get these criminals out of our country. These liberals are the scourge of our nation and they need to be stopped and punished severely!!
In California, my dmv had drivers handbooks in every language except english. Imagine a government agency that promotes illiteracy through language barriers then adds these same individuals to the voter rolls. Who would have believed that one could get an illegal drivers license at your neighborhood dmv?
They should check Texas DMVS for sure. I had to get a Texas ID and watched them take non English speaking people into a separate room and I asked clerk when my # came up and she said they read the questions in their language then write the answers in English. Hmmmmmmm
Do these DMV employees want to hear of carnage on our streets and roads? These employees are well paid and have good benefits, wonder what would make them think they can do this crime without being caught?
I think its their faith in our justice systems “slap on the wrist”. This needs to change and real justice needs to be brought back.
This is part of the problem of illegals “bringing there here”. Many come from countries where this kind of corrupt is a way of life. It’s just normal suborning public officials so why not? Be sure to kick out all the illegals who participated in this activity, as well as prosecuting the officials involved. Hint: Some supervisor knew this was going on and profited from it. Go get ‘em.
making roads more dangerous
The DMV employees that are guilty should be charged with aiding the enemy- – a federal crime – people died because of them!
In California, No Name Given could probably vote and perhaps even run for office!!! With the blessing of many.
Should be tried for treason and hung! People need to start paying for their treason with their lives!
I hope they have a way to track down those with a :purchased” license. They are dangerous. Another example of how our country is falling further and further down the rabbit hole of losing our country,
They would not be selling anything had the illegals were not here in the first place, will there be a prison sentence for any of the politicians , that lot should be in prison.
DAMN YOU Joe Biden….. Straight to HELL you sorry worthless P.O.S. see what you’ve done to this country. YOU should be prosecuted and DEPORTED as an enemy of the United States. The same goes for K Harris one sorry excuse for a VP, you didn’t help one little bit.
The real criminals that are being “overlooked” are past president Obama and Biden! How much more clear is treason against the American people than what those two presidents did and what keeps happening because of sanctions they both put in place?
As for the DMV, anyone going in any office of the DMV can see crap going on there. Many of the employees cannot even speak clearly and if you have to make changes in your license or registrations, you have to hope you can understand them and vice-versa. Great state of affairs now finding out they are legally handing out drivers licenses to illegals and profiteering from it too. I guess there are no safety issues put in place at the DMV for such crimes to be taking place. It doesn’t take a crook long to find a “glitch” in the so called system……..they are crooks to begin with so they find all the ways the steal and laugh all the way to the bank.
Would love to see fast arrests and prosecutions and long jail terms for these criminals…….YES, RIGHT UP TO THE O AND B PAST CRIMINAL PRESIDENTS!!!!!
These so called worthless & greedy DOT employees should face immediate termination, and prosecution. They deserve jail time.
No one driving a 80,00 lb semi-truck should be unqualified.
Get these 3 world scumbags out of our great country!
How about deporting the DMV scumbags to Iran?
ANY PUBLIC EMPLOYEE WHO BREAKS OUR LAWS AND ANY POLITICIAN WHO CONDONES THESE ACTIONS SHOULD FACE SIGNIFICANT AND IMMEDIATE JAIL TIME. NO EXCEPTIONS. IF LEGAL CITIZENS DON’T DEMAND THIS FROM THEIR ELECTED POLITICIANS AMERICA WILL BECOME A THIRLD WORLD BANANA REPUBLIC!
How will they feel when one of those illegal drivers smashes into one of their family’s cars. Sad situation since they have no insurance.
DMV = Department of Moronic Vagrants.
check out Michigan. That is happening here
The Mexican cartels have PLENTY of money; both from drugs and human trafficking. I’d bet lots of state officials in multiple states are finding a little extra cash in their mailboxes!
Hail to Sarah from Hillsdale. As a longtime supporter of Hillsdale, it is excellent to see her journalistic role at AMAC.
This editorial piece is of no surprise likely to most readers. It immediately prompted me to think in the big picture as I see it, that the ethical standards most Americans believed in has eroded for far too long, to the point where we are not paused to see this type of activity. How rampant is it? We read about these types of actions regularly, especially with the illegal influx relatively recently.
A long ongoing question I’ve had for illegals, our government, unions, business owners, et al, is even for those who immigrate legally, why is there no action taken to insist, assist, require those known to us, to become legal citizens. I cannot find a politician, et al who insists on this!!
They make it more dangerous for drivers everyday. Whenever I park, I look around the parking lot and see so many cars with dings, dents, and scratches. Call your local politician for help. lol lol lol
With reports of 20,000 fake drivers licenses being captured by customs, DMV employees getting rich selling unqualified Drivers licenses, and hundreds or “church” NGO’s using gov’t money to “lie” for illegals to get licenses, ALL with the “automatic” registration FEATURE that MUST be refused to NOT take effect, there COULDN’T be even the most miniscule amount of Voter Fraud, according to the Democrats. It IS also interesting that some places have more voters than people including children—yep, NO FRAUD!!! English, who NEEDS English, when your handed everything, no questions, EXCEPT CITIZENS.
This is a total shock to me and I am deeply concerned, frightened, and scared….and beyond angry to learn about this. How will they locate all those illegals driving illegally living somewhere here illegally not giving a hoot for OUR country or its people.
If you can’t speak, read or write in English, you have NO BUSINESS voting for anyone or anything in America.
This is probably why there is so many tractor-trailer accidents lately. One example last year when we were traveling back to Tennessee a semi smashed into the back of another one that was parked on the road and tied up traffic on I-75, all the truckers that got out of their trucks that we saw were all foreigners. None of them look like normal truck drivers like you usually see over the years.
Jesus, help us.
how about the biden administration gave cdls to millions of illegals
Hey, they force senior drivers, past a certain age, to submit to certain tests, to prove they can still visually react to road signage, so less important is it to demand a pro-efficencyn having a visual ( as read) signs and signage that are mandated by federal requirements to be ONLY in ENGLISH. Okay we don’t want to standarized the verbal language but all WRITTEN language used all-over the nation is in ENGLISH. we are not being discriminating by requiring this standard.
Won’t be much of an expense to ship them to Alligator Alcatraz.
America should not have any licenses issued by people for whom safety is not their first priority. Instead we have people who want to make money on the side by selling licenses and in some cases automatically enrolling Mr. “Nonames” to vote. This report should be widely circulated. Even more important people need to be shown from a very early age that what we do is not for ourselves alone: think of your neighbor as much as yourself. Try it. It works.
If they are illegals, bye bye!
Dangerous drivers daily in Dearborn, Michigan. Teenage Arab boys in particular. Not sure how many of the driving schools there are legitimate.
Time to discuss all of this corruption is past. It is now time to hold the criminals accountable and put them in jail! I personally am getting tired of all the talk and no action by the repub’s
Greed ALWAYS overrules common sense or morality. ALL the people involved in this DMV scam need to be severely punished. Who knows how many lives have been intentionally put in danger by these lowlife wanting to make a fast buck?
Make their lives miserable….
Take these truckers off the road at weigh stations or at any time they have been contacted by officials. Then fine the trucking company for hiring illegal unqualified drivers. It is scary enough to go out and dealing with car jackers and rapists now it isn’t safe as soon as we drive be it in the cityor Heaven forbid the interstate. The scope that president Trump has to fix is so massive. Biden slept through the destruction and let Dr Jill and her cronies destroy everything in America. It was a dark 4 years under Biden. We are finally seeing the sun. And please all of us traveling this holiday weekend watch out for the trucks you never know if the driver knows how to drive that big killing machine or not. Happy Fourth.
As one infamous person once said; What difference does it make
Plea bargain time and get more time than murderers…
How could a mother or father go home, look in their child’s face and not realize they are putting them in danger by selling illegal drivers licenses to illegal aliens who don’t know the English language or even how to drive? I pray they pay the ultimate price. But who will pay the most is the children of these criminals.
These unamerican civil servants [sic] should get a fun filled vacation at ALLIGATOR ALCARTAZ….
Government workers and politicians failing to protect the citizens that pay their salaries, and they should be representing citizens and their safety first. They need to be held accountable, fired, fined and held legally accountable. JMO
Does this apply to all DMVs??
Send the illegals driving to prison.
These DMV traitors to the American people should, I hope face severe penalties. I would hope at least 5 years in prison along with fines.
o ce again proof that obama and obiden are traitors to the people they were elected to serve and protect. They should be charged just like you or I would be.
Had read an article about a month ago about thousands of fake driver’s licenses arrived in the USA from China. I thought they’d been taken — evidently not all. Or China simply made more and shipped them here again.
It seems China will stop at nothing, and continue, to do whatever they can to undermine the US. And it seems most of this illegal stuff gets in from them via Mexico’s drug lords and coyote human traffickers.
Fire their asses and send them to prison.