Washington, D.C. — In an important step to protect public safety and keep essential services running, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit tonight granted an emergency stay to block the Trump-Vance administration’s harmful interim final rule that would revoke or deny renewal of commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) held by asylum seekers, refugees, and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.

The rule, issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), threatened to sideline nearly 200,000 trained and authorized commercial drivers nationwide—undermining public transportation, school bus operations, emergency response, supply chains, and local economic stability. Local governments and leaders from across the country, represented by Democracy Forward and the Public Rights Project, filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging the court to halt the rule while the litigation proceeds.

The court’s order temporarily pauses the rule, and prevents immediate and sweeping harm to communities that rely on experienced, licensed drivers every day.

“The court’s decision prevents the Trump-Vance administration from enforcing a rule that would pull qualified drivers off the road and force cities and counties to scale back essential services,” said Elena Goldstein, Legal Director at Democracy Forward. “Every community deserves safety, stability, and a functioning transportation system—not politically motivated policies that disrupt people’s livelihoods, harm local economies, and weaken public infrastructure.”

“This ruling is vital for local governments across the country who came together to stand up for their communities,” said Jill Habig, CEO and Founder, Public Rights Project. “The administration’s rule would have punished immigrant and refugee workers while undermining essential public services. This coalition’s advocacy made clear that cities and counties won’t stand by while federal overreach puts their residents at risk.”

The amicus brief was filed in support of plaintiffs Jorge Rivera Lujan, Aleksei Semenovskii, American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and American Federation of Teachers (AFT). 

The coalition filing the amicus brief included: City of Albany, New York; City of Cambridge, Massachusetts; Montgomery County, Maryland; City of New York, New York; City and County of San Francisco, California; Celina Benitez, Mayor, City of Mount Rainier, Maryland; Jesse Brown, Councilmember, City of Indianapolis, Indiana; Chelsea Byers, Mayor, City of West Hollywood, California; Chris Canales, Councilmember, City of El Paso, Texas; Michael Chameides, Supervisor, County of Columbia, New York; John Clark, Mayor, Town of Ridgway, Colorado; Alison Coombs, Councilmember, City of Aurora, Colorado; Christine Corrado, Councilmember, Township of Brighton, New York; Nikki Fortunato Bas, Supervisor, Alameda County, California; Brenda Gadd, Councilmember, Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee; Caroline Torosis, Mayor Pro Tempore, City of Santa Monica, California; Terry Vo, Councilmember, Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee; Ginny Welsch, Councilmember, Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee; and Robin Wilt, Councilmember, Township of Brighton, New York.

The case is Jorge Rivera Lujan et al. v. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration et al.

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Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.