The California Highway Patrol (CHP) began enforcing English Language Proficiency (ELP) on January 1, 2026. The CHP officer will conduct an assessment which includes:
- An interview to determine the driver’s ability to respond sufficiently in English.
- The ability to read and interpret road signs, including dynamic roadside message signs.
Drivers who fail the assessment will be placed out-of-service.
A little history, ELP has been required for interstate drivers since 1936. Enforcement, however, has been all over the place. For the first five decades, enforcement varied widely by state until 1982 when federal standards were put in place. Enforcement still varied as ELP infractions were bounced between an out-of-service violation and not an out-of-service violation. That is, until Trump signed the executive order for stronger enforcement of ELP in April 2025.