As Pennsylvania comes to grips with the death of state trooper Michael E. Pahira Jr., killed when a truck driver veered off Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County on July 1, striking him, lawmakers are acting to tighten requirements for commercial driver’s licenses.

A key issue focuses on immigrants; both on their legal status and their ability to read and understand English.

While CDL reforms have been underway for some time, Pahira’s death has lent urgency to what legislators see as a critical need for change.

The driver who hit Pahira, Michael Bon, 33, is a Haitian immigrant who remained in the country despite the revocation of his Temporary Protected Status.

He was charged with vehicular homicide and other crimes, and remains in Schuylkill County Prison under $700,000 bail. The Department of Homeland Security has placed a detainer on Bon.

On the federal level, changes have been wending their way through Congress for months.

The Non-Domiciled CDL Integrity Act, also known as Dalilah’s Law in honor of Dalilah Coleman, a now 6-year old child who was severely injured in a catastrophic multi-vehicle crash involving a tractor-trailer driven by an unqualified driver. The crash happened in June 2024, when Partap Singh, who was here illegally from India, was driving an 18-wheeler in California, where he had been issued a CDL.

According to the California Highway Patrol, Singh drove at an unsafe speed and failed to stop for traffic and a construction zone.

Dalilah‘s father has said the crash resulted in her not being able to walk, talk, eat, or attend kindergarten as planned. She was in a coma for three weeks and required six months of hospital treatment before her family could bring her home, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

The bill calls for tighter eligibility standards, prohibiting states from issuing CDLs to anyone who is not a US citizen, lawful permanent resident, or holder of specific qualifying work visas. It would also require mandatory English testing, requiring all CDL knowledge and skills tests to be administered in English only, ensuring drivers can safely read road signs and communicate with law-enforcement. The bill also calls for revocation of licenses, mandating states to review, audit, and revoke existing CDLs for anyone who fails to meet the new strict citizenship, residency, or visa requirements. Federal penalties are also included in the bill. It enforces state compliance by threatening to withhold federal Department of Transportation funding for noncompliant states.

Closer to home, the Pennsylvania legislature has been working on similar changes.

Introduced by Sen. Judy Ward, R-30, in January, the laws would crack down on “CDL mills” and require English proficiency, among other things.

In a memo accompanying the proposed bill, Ward wrote that “the General Assembly was mandated by the federal government to implement comprehensive changes to our CDL laws under Act 49 of 2015, including issuance of non-domiciled CDLs.

Unlike other states, PennDOT is prohibited from issuing a regular driver’s license and a CDL to illegal aliens, and each person must provide documentation to verify their legal status. Additionally, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration implemented Entry-Level Driver Training regulations in 2022 as required under federal law dating back to 2012. The states are required to deliver the ELDT program, which lacks cohesive accreditation and standardization. As a result, there are unqualified CDL training providers, referred to as “CDL mills,” conducting reckless practices and ultimately endangering the welfare of the traveling public.

“My multi-pronged legislation will close these loopholes to protect and secure the public from dangerous commercial vehicle operations,” Ward said.

“First, the Commonwealth must strengthen requirements to enforce and shutdown illegitimate ‘CDL mills.’ At the same time, we must bind our CDL training schools to a curriculum that will effectively prepare the next generation of CDL drivers. This first piece of legislation will amend the Education Code, ensuring the Pennsylvania Department of Education is fully empowered to execute standards and penalize ‘CDL mills.’ Second, the Commonwealth must require English proficiency in the licensing of drivers, particularly issuance of a CDL.

Ward said this means the CDL knowledge test will only be offered in English, consistent with the CDL road test, unless the federal government withholds transportation funding. Last, the Commonwealth lacks a penalty structure to punish unsafe CDL drivers following a roadside inspection by law enforcement. My legislation will establish new penalties for out-of-service violations, ensuring unqualified CDL drivers are removed from commercial vehicle operations.”

The state Senate in May passed a sweeping bipartisan legislative package of three bills aimed at curtailing the CDL mills, and requiring English proficiency for testing. They also increased penalties for unsafe operators on state roads.

The legislation is crucial, said state Sen. David G. Argall, R-124.

“I want to continue to reiterate my support for strengthening laws covering non-domiciled Commercial Drivers Licenses in Pennsylvania,” he said. “The Senate acted in May to ensure those who receive CDLs in Pennsylvania are fit to safely operate 80,000 pound vehicles on public highways. These important bills should become law as soon as possible.”