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Major Carriers Back Regulatory Crackdown Despite Political Shifts

The trucking industry's largest fleets are actively supporting federal enforcement initiatives, according to FreightWaves founder and CEO Craig Fuller. Speaking at the Convergence 2026 conference, Fuller said that regulatory pressure will persist regardless of administration changes. The federal crackdown on non-domiciled commercial driver's licenses, combined with recent Supreme Court rulings expanding broker liability and a $604 million jury verdict, represents the most significant regulatory transformation since deregulation in 1980. Major carriers, the American Trucking Associations, and the Truckload Carriers Association now view tighter hiring standards as essential for survival. These enforcement actions threaten smaller operators and brokers facing both driver shortages and expanded legal liability. The non-domiciled CDL interim rule could remove 5% to 7% of drivers from the market. Smaller carriers historically benefited from lower barriers to entry that funneled drivers to independent fleets, but tighter standards are reversing that dynamic.