While Republican officials took aim at the issuing of a commercial driver’s license with Real ID to an Uzbek man alleged to be a terrorist, a freight-oriented news site said there actually have been eight non-domiciled CDLs issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation that failed to comply with federal regulations.
The website freightwaves.com cited a letter sent Wednesday to Gov. Josh Shapiro and PennDOT Secretary Michael Carroll by Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration chief Derek Barrs.
Barrs wrote that a recent audit of the state’s CDL program uncovered eight non-domiciled CDLs issued by Pennsylvania that failed to comply with federal regulations.
“This is an unacceptable deviation from FMCSA’s regulations when issuing credentials to operate commercial motor vehicles,” Barrs stated in the letter.
“PennDOT must take immediate corrective action to audit its non-domiciled CDL program, correct the deficiencies that FMCSA identified … and any deficiencies identified through the State’s internal audit, and void or rescind and reissue all non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs that failed to comply with federal regulations at the time of issuance, renewal, transfer, or upgrade.”
A PennDOT spokeswoman said her agency has taken such steps.
“Following the release of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association’s (FMCSA) Interim Final Rule on Sept. 29, 2025, PennDOT immediately paused issuing all non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses,” PennDOT spokeswoman Erin Waters-Trasatt told the Indiana Gazette.
“PennDOT fully cooperated with FMCSA’s regularly-scheduled audit — and out of 150 cases the federal government audited, FMSCA did not identify a single commercial driver’s license issued to someone who was not eligible.”
Waters-Transatt went on to say that “all non-citizens who apply for driver’s licenses, including CDLs, must provide PennDOT with proof of identity and must have their legal presence in this country verified through the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database — a database maintained by the United States Department of Homeland Security. PennDOT follows the established federal process for confirming that the applicant was lawfully present using the SAVE database in every case.”
She concluded by saying “PennDOT’s top priority is safety on our roadways and ensuring only those legally eligible are able to secure a license. The Department is reviewing FMCSA’s letter and will respond within the required timeline.”
That timeline is 30 days, ergo the deadline is Dec. 19.
The letter to Shapiro and Carroll came a day after a news release by the House Republican Caucus leadership, including Minority Appropriations Chairman Jim Struzzi, R-Indiana, regarding the arrest of Akzror Bozorov.
The lawmakers said Bozorov,, “an Uzbeki national illegal immigrant with ties to terrorism obtained a Pennsylvania Commercial Driver’s License with a REAL ID indication.” They sent letters asking Attorney General Dave Sunday and Auditor General Tim DeFoor to investigate “Pennsylvania’s driver’s license, REAL ID, and voter registration systems to find out how this happened and prevent reoccurrence.”
Spokespersons for both Sunday and DeFoor said they are reviewing the situation.