FMCSA's Third Highway Shield Sweep Hits Arkansas Trucking
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the third wave of Operation Highway Shield, an FMCSA-led operation run with Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Arkansas Highway Police. Over 48 hours, inspectors conducted 1,724 inspections along Arkansas highways and freight corridors, according to the FMCSA release.
The operation placed 393 drivers and vehicles out of service, found 183 English Language Proficiency violations, referred 74 immigration violations for federal enforcement, made 44 criminal arrests and recovered one stolen trailer, FMCSA said.
FMCSA said the first wave took 176 drivers out of service, including 54 for language deficiencies, with 35 criminal arrests and 42 immigration detentions. The second wave, run in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio, detained 51 people on immigration violations, put 766 drivers and vehicles out of service, logged 36 ELP violations and recovered $1 million in stolen cargo.
FMCSA said that since an April 2025 executive order on trucking industry integrity, the agency has taken 33,000 drivers out of service for English proficiency failures, revoked 31,000 licenses issued to unvetted foreign drivers, and shut down nearly 10,000 driving schools.
What's next
- No date given for a fourth wave or its location.
- Watch for continued CDL school emergency removals tied to the same enforcement push.
All sources
- Press release: OPERATION HIGHWAY SHIELD: Trump’s Transportation Department Yanks More Than 300 Dangerous Truckers, Illegals off U.S. Roads — FMCSA Newsroom, 2026-11-04
- OPERATION HIGHWAY SHIELD: Trump’s Transportation Department Yanks More Than 300 Dangerous Truckers, Illegals off U.S. Roads | US Department of Transportation — Government site: Department of Transportation (.gov), 2026-11-04
Related coverage
- Operation Highway Shield results in more than 300 dangerous truckers taken off U.S. roads — KATV (via Google News), 2026-11-04
