Senator Jim Banks of Indiana on Tuesday rolled out the "TruckSafe Tipline," encouraging drivers to report "trucking carriers you believe may be breaking federal law."
"Use it to share concerns about carriers employing or contracting with drivers who are not legally in the United States, who are not authorized to drive a truck, or who cannot meet required English-language safety standards," the tipline page on Banks' website says.
Banks' website notes those reports will be shared with the Department of Transportation's Office of Inspector General, but that it's "part of an ongoing oversight and legislative effort," not legal advice or meant to lead to intervention in court cases.
[Related: FMCSA investigating chameleon carrier network after deadly Indiana crash]
The move follows a quadruple-fatal crash in Banks' state of Indiana earlier in February, after which Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested "criminal illegal alien Bekzhan Beishekeev of Kyrgyzstan," the driver ICE said was responsible for the crash.
On the Senate floor on Monday, Banks explained his motivation for the tipline.
“Last week on February 3 an illegal immigrant from Kyrgyzstan who was allowed into the U.S. by Joe Biden in 2023 killed four people on State Road 67 in Indiana, not far from where I live. He drove a semi truck head on into a van. That van was carrying a 50 year old father and two boys who were only 19 and 25 years old, along with a family friend, and they were all from a local Amish community. And now they’re all dead. I’m angry about it, I’ve had enough of it. It’s stories like this that show why mass deportations matter and why they’re needed now more than ever."
Banks wasn't the only legislator to weigh in.
"It’s honestly unbelievable how often this keeps happening. People are just trying to get home safely, and they’re sharing the road with drivers who never should’ve had a CDL in the first place," wrote North Carolina Rep. Pat Harrigan. "That’s why I introduced the SAFE Drivers Act, to require a real English proficiency standard before a license is issued, not after someone is nearly killed or worse."
[Related: Homeland Security explains how 'illegal aliens' get CDLs in the U.S.]
Harrigan made reference to a bill that would require English tests for CDL drivers.
Florida Senator Ashley Moody in a series of tweets pushed the Safer Truckers Act, which would tighten up CDL eligibility for non-citizens.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has been investigating the Indiana crash since Friday, and already has turned up evidence of possible violations of federal law by the carrier who employed the driver responsible.
Overdrive reporting uncovered a video of a carrier associated with Beishekeev's fleet showing how to quickly change USDOT numbers on the truck door with magnetic stickers.
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