FMCSA weighs writing English proficiency out-of-service rule into regulations

FMCSA has finished taking public comments on a proposal that would write English language proficiency (ELP) out-of-service enforcement directly into the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. The comment window on the notice of proposed rulemaking, published August 10, 2026 (Docket FMCSA-2026-0826), closed on October 9. No final rule has been published yet.

For most drivers, nothing changes on the road today. Drivers who fail the ELP check are already being placed out of service under the CVSA North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria. The proposal is about locking that practice into federal regulation.

What the proposal would do

The rule itself is not new. Under 49 CFR 391.11(b)(2), an interstate CMV driver must be able to read and speak English well enough to talk with the public, understand highway signs, answer official questions and fill out reports and records.

The NPRM would:

• add 391.11(b)(2) to the list of rules named in the definition of an out-of-service order (sections 390.5 and 390.5T);
• add a new paragraph (c) to section 391.11 saying a driver who violates the ELP requirement is placed out of service; and
• write a limited exception into the rule for drivers inside the U.S.-Mexico border commercial zones.

FMCSA says the change responds to a petition CVSA filed on October 25, 2025. The agency estimates the rule would cost motor carriers about $14.4 million a year.

How enforcement got here

According to the NPRM's background section, CVSA dropped ELP from its out-of-service criteria in 2015, and a 2016 FMCSA policy told federal staff to cite drivers without taking them off the road. That changed after Executive Order 14286 in April 2025. FMCSA issued a new enforcement memo in May 2025, and CVSA's updated out-of-service criteria took effect June 25, 2025.

Under the 2025 guidance described in the NPRM, inspectors begin every roadside inspection in English. If a driver seems not to understand, the inspector runs a two-step check: an interview first, then, if the driver passes, a highway sign recognition test.

On April 16, 2026, FMCSA replaced that memo with a new one, MC-SEE-2026-0002. On April 19, CVSA's board pointed its criteria to current FMCSA guidance, so state inspectors follow the same policy as federal staff.

The border-zone exception

Under the April 2026 policy and the proposed rule, an inspector in a U.S.-Mexico border commercial zone has to look at the driver's current trip before deciding on an out-of-service order. If bills of lading, dispatch records or other trip papers show the driver is heading somewhere in the U.S. outside the zone, the driver goes out of service. If the trip stays inside the zone, the driver is cited but not placed out of service. That holds even if a different driver will later haul the freight farther.

A driver who gets the exception can still be placed out of service for any other out-of-service violation.

Why it matters if enforcement is already happening

Codifying the rule makes it harder to undo. States that take Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program funds must keep laws compatible with the federal regulations. The NPRM notes that once the out-of-service condition is in the FMCSRs, states would have to adopt it into state law no matter what happens to the CVSA criteria later. FMCSA also says it will train federal and state enforcement staff once a final rule is published.

For Canadian drivers and carriers

The NPRM says Canada- and Mexico-domiciled drivers have been subject to the U.S. English requirement since the 1930s, and that the proposal applies equally to every driver operating in the United States. Carriers sending drivers south should treat English proficiency as part of driver qualification, not just a roadside issue. FMCSA has published guidance for motor carriers on assessing ELP during hiring.

What's next

FMCSA now reviews the comments. It can publish a final rule, change the proposal or drop it, and there is no set date. The full proposal and public comments are in the regulations.gov docket.