Quick Read
- Florida enacted a law in February 2026 requiring all state driving tests to be English-only, eliminating Spanish and Creole options.
- The Trump administration mandated English-only commercial driver’s license (CDL) exams nationwide, citing safety and oversight concerns.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy linked the federal mandate to high-profile crashes involving illegal immigrant truck drivers.
- Critics, including Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert, warn the English-only rules could increase unlicensed driving and compromise safety.
- This policy shift revives historical language debates in Florida, echoing a previous English-only law in Miami-Dade County from the 1980s.
MIAMI (Azat TV) – Florida enacted a new state law in February 2026 requiring all driving tests to be administered exclusively in English, a move quickly followed by a federal mandate from the Trump administration for English-only commercial driver’s license (CDL) exams. These parallel developments have reignited a contentious debate across the United States regarding language policy, public safety, and the integration of non-English speaking populations, particularly in states with large immigrant communities.
The Florida law, which went into effect on February 6, 2026, specifically banished driving tests in Spanish and Creole, languages previously offered by the state. This decision by Governor Ron DeSantis’s administration affects Florida, a state with the third-largest foreign-born population in the U.S. Meanwhile, on Friday, February 20, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced sweeping changes to federal commercial trucking regulations, mandating that all CDL exams be administered solely in English nationwide. Both policies are framed by proponents as essential for road safety, ensuring drivers can understand road signs and communicate with law enforcement.
Florida’s English-Only Driving Test Law
The new Florida statute represents a significant shift in policy for a state where approximately two-thirds of Miami-Dade’s households speak Spanish at home, according to U.S. Census data. The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles confirmed that all driver license knowledge and skills tests will now be conducted in English, discontinuing printed exams in other languages.
Dariel Fernandez, Miami-Dade’s Republican tax collector, voiced support for the change, stating, “Every single road sign is in English. It’s about safety.” However, Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert, a Democrat, expressed concerns that the English-only rule could be counterproductive for safety. Gilbert argued that while he desires everyone to learn English, it is not strictly necessary for safe vehicle operation and that the policy might inadvertently encourage non-English speakers to drive without licenses.
Transportation attorney Doug Burnetti, based in Florida, echoed these concerns in a Miami Herald interview, highlighting the “obvious real danger is that the state could wind up with more people driving without driver’s licenses.” Burnetti pointed out that individuals who previously passed tests in other languages, or new applicants unable to pass an English-only exam, might continue to drive uninsured and without current proficiency checks, potentially compromising highway safety.
Federal CDL English Proficiency Mandate
The federal directive, announced by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy at the Department of Transportation (DOT) headquarters, targets commercial driver’s licenses. Duffy, alongside Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator Derek Barrs, stated that the move aims to strengthen oversight and ensure commercial drivers possess sufficient English skills to read road signs and communicate with law enforcement. Duffy criticized lax oversight under the previous administration, alleging that thousands of ‘sham’ commercial driving schools, or ‘CDL mills,’ lacked proper curriculum and training.
The announcement follows a federal crackdown known as Operation SafeDRIVE, which involved over 8,200 inspections and resulted in 704 drivers being taken out of service, with approximately 500 cited for failing to meet English proficiency standards. Duffy also explicitly linked the new regulation to ‘high-profile crashes involving drivers who were in the country illegally,’ as reported by Fox Business.
Historical Context of Language Debates in Florida
Florida, particularly Miami-Dade County, has a history of intense language debates. In the 1980s, amid the Mariel boatlift, Miami-Dade County enacted an English-only law that remained on the books for 13 years. This period of “language wars” is currently being revisited in a Miami New Drama play titled “English Only,” which reflects on the historical parallels between the 1980s and 2026. Michel Hausmann, the play’s Artistic Director, told ArtBurst Miami, “We’re really telling the story of 1980 with the mirror to 2026.”
The county’s original English-only ordinance was eventually repealed unanimously in 1993, marking a shift towards a more inclusive linguistic policy after years of acrimony. However, the current political climate, marked by a new state law and federal action, suggests a potential reversal of that trend. Attorney Burnetti noted that predicting a repeal of the current English-only driving test law is difficult, especially “if further similar English-only laws are passed by both the state and federal government.”
Broader Implications and Ongoing Debate
The push for English-only policies extends beyond driving tests. Advocacy groups like ProEnglish are actively lobbying Congress to designate English as the official language of the United States. While President Donald Trump issued an executive order in March 2025 declaring English the official language, Congress has yet to pass such a law.
The debate also touches upon voting rights. While federal law currently supersedes local statutes, requiring multilingual ballots in jurisdictions meeting Census thresholds, some legal experts, like Burnetti, suggest the driver’s license law “could support a movement that may try to pass state and/or federal laws applying the same reasoning to ballots.” This raises concerns about potential indirect effects on voter access for non-English speakers, particularly if future laws were to link voter registration to driver’s license possession.
The recent enactment of English-only driving test requirements in Florida and the federal mandate for commercial licenses underscore a significant shift in U.S. language policy, reflecting a renewed national conversation about cultural identity, public safety, and immigrant rights that echoes historical precedents in communities like Miami.