The Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC,) along with attorneys for the Dzion Family (Pajcic & Pajcic, P.A.), announced today that the family of the late Connor Dzion have partnered for the purpose of enacting "CONNOR'S LAW," (officially, "Standards Affirming Fluency in English (SAFE) Motor Carrier Act of 2025," a CDL English proficiency bill submitted to Congress this month, with a request for sponsorship and introduction into the House of Representatives & US Senate.
WASHINGTON, March 27, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC,) along with attorneys for the Dzion Family (Pajcic & Pajcic, P.A.), announced today that the family of the late Connor Dzion have partnered for the purpose of enacting "CONNOR'S LAW," (officially, "Standards Affirming Fluency in English (SAFE) Motor Carrier Act of 2025," a CDL English proficiency bill submitted to Congress this month, with a request for sponsorship and introduction into the House of Representatives & US Senate.
Connor, a college freshman from Florida, was tragically killed by a distracted unlicensed truck driver in 2017, a driver who could not read police emergency safety warning signs on the Florida highway displayed in English that said "Slow Down. Accident Ahead." Connor had only attended two weeks of classes at the University of North Florida in 2017 when the distracted semi-truck driver violently slammed into a line of cars on Sept. 4th, 2017. Connor had been sitting in standstill traffic for over an hour on Interstate 95 near Yulee because another semi-truck driver had flipped his vehicle ahead of him, blocking all movement on the highway.
Under United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) regulations, 49 CFR § 391.11(a), General Qualifications of Drivers:
"a person shall not drive a commercial motor vehicle unless he/she is qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle. Except as provided in § 391.63, a motor carrier shall not require or permit a person to drive a commercial motor vehicle unless that person is qualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle. (b) Except as provided in subpart G of this part, a person is qualified to drive a motor vehicle if he/she— (1) Is at least 21 years old; (2) Can read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs and signals in the English language, to respond to official inquiries, and to make entries on reports and records."
Just one year prior to the accident that took Connor's life, FMCSA had issued a 2016 directive to all Federal and state law enforcement officers ordering them to stop placing non-English-speaking truck drivers out-of-service, despite the obvious public safety implications and concerns, alleging such enforcement activity somehow violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits "discrimination based on race, color, and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance." This 2016 change in FMCSA policy replaced a prior 2007 directive to place such non-English-speaking truck drivers out-of-service in the interest of public safety.
Connor's Law would enact the existing Federal rule into law and establish a duty for the Secretary to enforce the English proficiency standard. Specifically, it would change existing law* codified at 49 USC §31502 to read:
49 USC §31502. Requirements for qualifications, hours of service, safety, and equipment standards
(b) Motor Carrier and Private Motor Carrier Requirements -The Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe requirements for-
(1) qualifications and maximum hours of service of employees of, and safety of operation and equipment of, a motor carrier; and
(2) qualifications and maximum hours of service of employees of, and standards of equipment of, a motor private carrier, when needed to promote safety of operation.
(3) the states to test for English proficiency during Commercial Driver License (CDL) knowledge testing to confirm drivers of commercial motor vehicles (CMV) can read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs and signals in the English language, to respond to official inquiries, and to make entries on reports and records. This requirement shall not be waived by the Secretary and the Secretary shall require Department enforcement personnel and the states to place out of service any CMV driver found to not be able to read or speak English while operating a CMV.
*changes indicated by bold underlined text.
SBTC Executive Director James Lamb proclaimed today:
"It is with both great pride, yet somber feelings, that we announce today that we have secured the Dzion family's consent to honor Connor Dzion by naming the SAFE Motor Carrier Act of 2025 in his memory. While nothing can ever compensate the Dzion family for the loss of their son, we hope this gesture by the small motor carrier industry somehow brings them a measure of comfort and peace, knowing Connor's life will now, with an anticipated act of Congress, be forever remembered through this important public safety motor carrier legislation. The FMCSA erred terribly when it directed law enforcement not to put unqualified non-English-speaking drivers out-of-service in 2016. That has to end. With Congress' support, it will. SBTC, the Dzion family, and our supporters will together #MakeTheRoadsSafeAgain. We now call on Congress to save lives and immediately introduce and enact #ConnorsLaw."
"When industry, safety advocates and the family of a tragic motor carrier accident all band together and ask for Federal safety legislation, Congress needs to heed the call and listen. And for the record, before the critics start their nonsense, let the record reflect that SBTC follows the same theory with respect to the US island of Puerto Rico. If you can't read the road signs in PR, which are all in Spanish, then you shouldn't possess a CDL or drive a CMV on the island either. This is, therefore, not about English superiority or supremacy over other languages or cultures. It is simply about public safety and #CommonSense, " Lamb added.
Connor's Law has been immediately endorsed by the following trucking industry trade and advocacy organizations so far:
*American Truckers United
*National Owner Operators Association (NOOA)
*Past Time for a Change
*Professional Trucking Association Group (PTAG)
*United Coalition of American Drivers
*United Truckers of America
We have asked numerous safety advocates to join us.
SBTC is a 21,000+ dues-paying member national 501(c)(6) non-profit transportation industry trade association, which promotes and protects the interests of small businesses in the industry. Founded in 2014, SBTC encourages ethical business practices and supports teamwork, cooperation, transparency, and partnerships among our trucker, small carrier, small broker, forwarder & shipper members who seek to network and do business fairly and with the utmost integrity.
Media Contact
Jim Lamb, Small Business in Transportation Coalition, 1 202 587-2751, [email protected], www.Truckers.com
SOURCE Small Business in Transportation Coalition
Share this article