BREAKING: States score win in fight over federal access to CDL driver database
A coalition of 22 states challenging the Trump administration’s demand for 17 million commercial driver’s data won a temporary restraining order Thursday. The post BREAKING: States score win in fight over federal access to CDL driver database appeared first on FreightWaves.
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A coalition of states scored another legal victory Thursday when a federal judge granted a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration from obtaining state-owned records containing personal information on millions of commercial driver’s license holders. U. S. District Judge Anthony J.
Trenga granted the states’ request for a temporary restraining order following a hearing Thursday in the U. S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The ruling prevents the federal government from obtaining the plaintiff states’ records from the Commercial Driver’s License Information System, or CDLIS, while the court considers whether to issue a preliminary injunction. The decision marks a significant escalation from an administrative stay Trenga issued Aug. 13 that temporarily froze the U. S.
Department of Transportation and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s efforts to obtain the records while the court considered the states’ emergency request. window. googletag = window. googletag || {cmd: []}; googletag. cmd. push(function() {googletag.
defineSlot('/21776187881/FW-Responsive-Main_Content-Slot1', [[300, 100], [320, 50], [728, 90], [468, 60]], 'div-gpt-ad-1709668545404-0'). defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps. banner1). addService(googletag. pubads()); googletag. pubads(). enableSingleRequest(); googletag. pubads(). collapseEmptyDivs(); googletag. enableServices(); }); googletag. cmd.
push(function() {googletag. display('div-gpt-ad-1709668545404-0'); }); The earlier order prohibited the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators from providing the requested information and barred federal officials from retaliating against AAMVA or the plaintiff states over the dispute.
The legal battle involves records associated with approximately 17 million commercial drivers nationwide and comes amid a broader Trump administration crackdown on commercial driver licensing and enforcement. The coalition filed suit Aug.
13 against DOT, FMCSA and AAMVA, while a related legal action challenges a Department of Homeland Security subpoena seeking similar CDL information. The states allege the administration is unlawfully attempting to obtain a state-owned database containing drivers’ names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers and licensing records.
RELATED: Court freezes Trump administration bid for nationwide CDL database Judge finds states likely to prevail Thursday’s ruling represents an important early victory for the states because granting a temporary restraining order requires the court to consider, among other factors, whether plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their underlying legal claims.
Trenga found that the states had demonstrated a likelihood of success on several of their claims challenging FMCSA’s demand for the bulk transfer of CDLIS records. window. googletag = window. googletag || {cmd: []}; googletag. cmd. push(function() {googletag.
defineSlot('/21776187881/fw-responsive-main_content-slot3', [[728, 90], [468, 60], [320, 50], [300, 100]], 'div-gpt-ad-1665767553440-0'). defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps. banner1). addService(googletag. pubads()); googletag. pubads(). enableSingleRequest(); googletag. pubads(). collapseEmptyDivs(); googletag. enableServices(); }); googletag. cmd.
push(function() {googletag. display('div-gpt-ad-1665767553440-0'); }); The states have argued that CDLIS was established as a state-to-state information-sharing system for commercial driver licensing, rather than a federal repository of CDL holders’ personal information.
Congress established CDLIS in 1986 to help states determine whether commercial driver applicants already hold licenses elsewhere and identify drivers who have been disqualified. AAMVA, a nonprofit association representing state motor vehicle agencies, has operated CDLIS under contract with DOT since 1988.
FMCSA currently has the ability to query information about individual drivers, but the states contend the agency’s demand for the entire database represents an unprecedented expansion of federal access. FMCSA’s justification questioned The dispute intensified after FMCSA demanded that AAMVA provide records for every driver in CDLIS going back five years.
FMCSA has said it intends to use the information to carry out its statutory safety and regulatory responsibilities, including verifying CDL validity and conducting motor carrier safety assessments. window. googletag = window. googletag || {cmd: []}; googletag. cmd. push(function() {googletag.
defineSlot('/21776187881/fw-responsive-main_content-slot4', [[300, 100], [320, 50], [728, 90], [468, 60]], 'div-gpt-ad-1709668086344-0'). defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps. banner1). addService(googletag. pubads()); googletag. pubads(). enableSingleRequest(); googletag. pubads(). collapseEmptyDivs(); googletag. enableServices(); }); googletag. cmd.
push(function() {googletag. display('div-gpt-ad-1709668086344-0'); }); FMCSA also told AAMVA that information could subsequently be disclosed to other federal agencies when used for legitimate government
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