On Sept. 25, FMCSA granted a five-year exemption to the Oregon Department of Transportation (Oregon) from the CDL rules concerning acceptable proof of citizenship. ODOT requested the exemption from the proof of citizenship CDL requirements to be allowed to issue standard commercial learner permits (CLPs) and CDLs, rather than issuing non-domiciled CLPs and CDLs, to citizens of Freely Associated States (FAS) who now reside in Oregon and wish to obtain a CDL. The FAS are the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.
The exemption allows Oregon to accept a valid, unexpired passport issued by a FAS and an Arrival/Departure Record, meaning an I-94 or I-94A form, to prove that the individual has entered the United States lawfully, and issue standard CLPs and CDLs to these individuals.