English Language Proficiency Is Now an Out-of-Service Violation

Since June 25, 2025, a commercial driver who cannot demonstrate sufficient English proficiency at a roadside inspection can be placed out of service (OOS) on the spot — grounding the truck until the situation is resolved. It is one of the most consequential enforcement shifts the industry has seen in years, and it caught many carriers off guard because the underlying rule itself is not new.

The rule behind the headlines

Federal law has required English proficiency for commercial drivers since 1937. Under 49 CFR § 391.11(b)(2), a driver must be able to "read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs and signals, to respond to official inquiries, and to make entries on reports and records."

What changed is enforcement. A 2016 FMCSA policy had directed inspectors not to place drivers out of service for English violations. That guidance is now rescinded.

How we got here

• April 28, 2025 — the White House issued the Executive Order "Enforcing Commonsense Rules of the Road for America's Truck Drivers," directing FMCSA to rescind the 2016 memo and revise enforcement so an ELP violation results in an out-of-service order.
• May 20, 2025 — FMCSA issued new internal enforcement guidance (Memo MC-SEE-2025-0001) for roadside inspectors, superseding the 2016 policy.
• June 25, 2025 — the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) added English proficiency to the North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria, making it an enforceable OOS violation nationwide.

What the roadside assessment looks like

If an inspector's initial contact suggests a driver may not understand instructions, the inspector conducts a two-part English assessment as part of the inspection:

• A driver interview — answering questions about duty status, cargo, routing, and documents.
• A highway-sign recognition check.

The border-zone exception

After concerns about cross-border trade, FMCSA clarified that drivers operating strictly within the narrow U.S.–Mexico commercial border zone (roughly 3–20 miles) can still be cited but are not grounded by the OOS portion of the rule. Once a driver leaves that zone and continues into the interior, full enforcement — including OOS — applies.

The impact so far

Enforcement has been substantial. In the year following June 25, 2025, FMCSA and industry data attribute roughly 20,000 out-of-service orders to English-proficiency violations, with sharp increases in roadside inspection activity. For a small carrier, a single OOS event can mean a stranded load, recovery costs, a second driver dispatched, and a mark on the safety record — so the practical cost of non-compliance is high.

How carriers should prepare

1. Notify your drivers in writing about the standard and what a roadside assessment involves, so no one is surprised at a scale house.
2. Screen for proficiency during hiring and periodically — a driver should be able to answer basic duty-status and routing questions and read common highway signs in English, unaided.
3. Document your qualification process in the driver qualification file, while being careful to comply with employment-law limits on English-only policies (consult employment counsel where needed).
4. Plan for OOS contingencies — know how you would recover equipment and cover a load if a driver is grounded.

How Ashton helps

Driver qualification and DOT paperwork are exactly what our compliance service keeps current — from driver files to audit prep — while our recruiting desk screens candidates before they ever get in your truck. Staying compliant shouldn't pull you off the road; that's the work we take off your plate.