FMCSA reinstates three CDL schools, fights six other ELDT removal appeals
All nine were pulled from the Training Provider Registry on August 31 over English proficiency failures. Filings dated October 26 show how the cases are splitting.
Nine CDL schools that FMCSA pulled from its Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) Training Provider Registry (TPR) on August 31 are now on two different tracks.
Filings dated October 26 by FMCSA's Office of Safety Programs, posted to regulations.gov on October 26 and 27, show three schools back on the registry and six still fighting their removal.
Why they were removed
Each removal notice cites the same basis. FMCSA ran an audit using its own data. It looked for drivers who got an ELDT certificate from a school and were later cited for an English language proficiency (ELP) violation.
FMCSA used its emergency power under 49 CFR 380.723(e). That rule lets the agency remove a provider immediately for fraud, criminal behaviour, willful disregard of the ELDT rules, or when public health, interest or safety requires it.
The notices point to three rules:
- The Class A and Class B theory curriculum must cover ELP requirements and the consequences of violations (49 CFR Part 380, Appendix A unit A1.5.6 and Appendix B unit B1.5.6).
- Trainees in behind-the-wheel training must certify they will comply with the driver qualification rules in Part 391 (49 CFR 380.707(a)).
- A driver who cannot read and speak English well enough is not qualified to drive a CMV in interstate commerce (49 CFR 391.11(b)(2)).
Reinstated
| School | Docket | Trainees later cited for ELP | Reinstated | |---|---|---|---| | CDL Commercial Trucks Training LLC | FMCSA-2026-3705 | 55 | Oct. 23 | | Prime Time Trucking USA Inc. | FMCSA-2026-3700 | 35 | Oct. 23 | | CDL Safe Driving Academy LLC | FMCSA-2026-3706 | 10 | Oct. 21 |
In each case, FMCSA says reinstatement was "based on corrective actions" the school took to fix the deficiencies in its removal notice. The agency now asks that the school's appeal be dismissed as moot and the docket closed.
Still contested
In these six cases FMCSA filed a full response and argues the petition should be denied.
| School | Docket | Trainees later cited for ELP | |---|---|---| | V2 Group | FMCSA-2026-3697 | 119 | | CDL Lab, LLC | FMCSA-2026-3702 | 84 | | Go4CDL LLC | FMCSA-2026-3703 | 12 | | National Highway Safety Administration, LLC | FMCSA-2026-3698 | 12 | | International Truck Driving School | FMCSA-2026-3704 | 10 | | Start CDL Inc. | FMCSA-2026-3699 | 6 |
In the Go4CDL response, FMCSA argues it "reasonably relied on the evidence," did not err in issuing the removal, and acted consistently with due process.
What a removal means
Under the removal notices, a school must stop all ELDT operations right away. It cannot:
- teach the ELDT theory or behind-the-wheel curriculum
- use its instructors, vehicles or range for ELDT
- issue completion certificates or upload them to the TPR
- enroll new ELDT students
- say it is a registered training provider
What to do
If you are a student or new driver: check that your school is active on the Training Provider Registry before you pay or start. A school removed from the TPR cannot issue or upload your ELDT certificate while it is off the registry.
If you are a carrier hiring new CDL holders: ELP is now an audit point for schools, not only for drivers at roadside. Screen new hires for English proficiency yourself. A valid ELDT certificate does not prove a driver will pass an ELP check.
If you run a school: the curriculum's ELP unit is not a box to tick. FMCSA is matching certificates against roadside ELP citations, and the counts in these cases start as low as 6.