A U.S. House committee passed a bill Wednesday that Republicans argue will keep American roads safe by blocking non-English speaking illegal immigrants from getting behind the wheel of big rigs.
The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee advanced Dalilah’s Law (HR 5688) by a vote of 35-26. The bill is now eligible to move to the House floor for consideration.
The legislation mandates all portions of the Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) exam be administered in English and requires states to strictly verify legal residency. It aims to crack down on blue states handing out CDLs to illegal immigrants who can’t read basic road signs.
Republicans on the committee blasted the Biden administration’s open border policies and the “reckless actions” of liberal governors for creating a nationwide public safety crisis.
Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pennsylvania, called out his home state’s administration under Gov. Josh Shapiro for issuing CDLs to ineligible foreigners without verifying legal status.
“This law doesn’t care why you’re here, what your circumstances are. We have one standard. This law says just meet the standard,” Perry said. “These deadly crashes have become far too common in the aftermath of the Biden administration flooding our country with illegal foreign nationals.”
Rep. Pete Stauber, R-Minnesota, echoed the frustration, pointing to the recent viral video of an immigrant licensed in that state driving an 18-wheeler the wrong way for miles on a Missouri highway.
“Police said the driver showed no signs of impairment or medical issues and determined the Somali trucker was going the wrong way simply because he couldn’t read the road signs,” Stauber said — adding he was angry but not surprised to learn the dangerous driver had been issued a CDL by his home state of Minnesota under Gov. Tim Walz.
Georgia Republican Mike Collins brought a unique hands-on perspective to the committee, pushing back on claims the bill is xenophobic.
“I’ve got the commercial driver’s license in my pocket. I’ve had them for 40 years now. For the life of me, I can’t understand how these licenses have been issued to people who can’t speak or read English,” Collins said. “I don’t see any Arabic or Russian signs in this country.”
Georgia Democrat Rep. Hank Johnson Jr. strongly opposed the bill by claiming the standard of knowing English has “nothing to do with safety.”
“This bill doesn’t raise any standards. It’s an anti-worker bill that raises barriers,” Johnson said. “It slaps an English-only mandate on the entire commercial driver’s license written exam, a mandate that has nothing to do with safety and everything to do with shutting qualified drivers out.”
Perry addressed Johnson directly, expressing disbelief that reading comprehension is separate from road safety: “My goodness, reading doesn’t have anything to do with safety? I don’t know why you make those statements. … It’s outrageous.”
🚨 WATCH: A Missouri driver encountered a illegal alien driving the wrong way for miles on Highway 61, narrowly avoiding a head-on crash before the truck sped off southbound.
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) February 25, 2026
Committee Chairman Rep. Sam Graves, R-Missouri, firmly rejected the idea that safety standards should be compromised to accommodate illegal immigrants or non-English speakers. He praised Missouri police for taking the wrong-way Somali truck driver out of service before another tragedy.
“Now is the time for Congress to address these safety issues and make sure only qualified drivers can get behind the wheel,” Graves said.
The bill is named after Dalilah Coleman, 5, who sat in the committee audience alongside her parents as lawmakers debated. An illegal alien driving a semi-truck struck and severely injured the young girl, sparking the current push for stricter standards.
Dalilah also attended this year’s State of the Union address as a guest of President Donald Trump.
During the address, the president called on Congress to pass legislation blocking illegal and unqualified immigrants from obtaining a CDL to prevent more families from suffering similar tragedies.
“As someone in the industry takes great pride in hauling things across this country, to see Dalilah and her family sitting there…that shouldn’t have ever happened. This [bill] is common sense,” Collins said.