Second Circuit questions ‘confusing’ immigrant licensing rule that led to DOT pulling $73 million in New York road funding

The Second Circuit heard arguments Monday over the Trump administration's cancellation of more than $73 million in highway funding for New York, after the Department of Transportation found the state noncompliant on commercial licensing rules for noncitizen truck drivers. A Justice Department lawyer told the panel the interpretation behind the penalty is somewhat ambiguous, calling it merely the best reading rather than a clear legal requirement.

New York argues the licenses were lawfully issued to people with legal status, and its lawyer called the government's rationale a textbook post hoc justification built on an expiration rule never enforced before. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy had framed the funding block as protecting Americans from unvetted, unqualified foreign drivers when he announced it in April.

Judge Alison Nathan pressed on the mismatch between work-authorization expiration and lawful-presence timing, calling the overlap confusing. The panel did not rule immediately; a parallel challenge from California is pending in the D.C. Circuit.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.