🎣 Highway's Non-Domiciled Filter

Happy Monday. Highway quietly shipped a new screening rule that lets brokers filter out carriers linked to non-domiciled CDL holders. A breakdown and the reactions in today's feature.

Plus:

• Black Friday Stays Big
• ATA Tonnage Drops Again
• Winter Storm Disrupts Freight

🍳 What's Cookin' In Freight

🛍️ Black Friday Stays Big, Even as Shoppers Pull Back. Black Friday kicked off with heavy mall traffic and solid early momentum, even as retailers face a tougher economic backdrop shaped by tariffs, softening job growth, and fading consumer confidence. Shoppers leaned hard into discounts and shifted spending toward smaller-ticket buys. Mall traffic has surpassed 2019 levels, and retail groups expect holiday sales to grow roughly 3.6–4%. But budgets are tightening: consumers planned to spend about $890 on average, while tariffs have pushed retail prices up nearly 5%. Online channels continue to dominate as promotions stretch across weeks rather than a single shopping day.

📉 ATA Tonnage Drops Again. The ATA Truck Tonnage Index fell 2.1% in October, marking the sharpest monthly drop in volumes since January and signaling continued freight market weakness. ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said October’s reading was 111.9, down from 114.3, represents the lowest tonnage level of 2025 and the largest year-over-year decline so far. Contract freight remains soft, pressure is mounting from weak industrial demand, and year-to-date tonnage is now flat vs. 2024. While the raw Not Seasonally Adjusted index rose seasonally to 119.2, ATA noted that the broader freight environment remains difficult, underscoring just how sluggish the trucking economy is heading into year-end.

❄️ Winter Storm Disrupts Freight. A powerful Thanksgiving-weekend storm hammered Midwest freight corridors with heavy snow, ice, and whiteout conditions, snarling travel and triggering major delays for carriers and brokers. A 45-vehicle pileup on Indiana’s I-70 forced a temporary shutdown, while Chicago O’Hare saw more than 1,000 cancellations and widespread trucking delays. With holiday volumes already stretching networks, the storm caused cascading disruptions across the Midwest and Great Lakes. Safety comes first. As Milian Xpress president Alien Milian put it, “No load is worth putting your life at risk.” Another system is expected to hit the East Coast early this week, tightening capacity and extending delays.

TOGETHER WITH TRINITY LOGISTICS

We’ve been in this business long enough to know recognition isn’t one-size-fits-all. That’s why at Trinity we built real, lasting programs to celebrate our Freight Agents. From our Platinum Agent Program to spotlights and personal touches, we honor success with the kind of respect only experience brings. When you win, we celebrate alongside you. 

Highway Makes Non-Domiciled CDLs a Filter Option

Last week, Highway quietly shipped a new filter that could reshape which carriers brokers will touch in 2026.

According to FreightWaves reporting, the Highway platform now lets brokers screen out carriers whose primary account owner holds a non-domiciled CDL, pulling data from FMCSA’s PSP and state DMVs to flag those entities at the account level.

Highway says the rule is optional and overrideable, so it is not actually a ban. But in a market where brokers, insurers, and shippers are already jumpy about immigration enforcement, this can be seen as a new "do not load" switch.

Highway CCO Michael Caney said in a statement:

In response to broker demand, Highway created an optional screening rule that highlights specific carrier attributes that appear within these theft patterns. One category relates to non-domiciled and limited-term CDLs, an area where federal agencies have increased their enforcement and investigative attention.

Why Now

This sits on top of FMCSA’s interim final rule, “Restoring Integrity to the Issuance of Non-Domiciled CDLs,” dropped September 29. The rule tightens who can hold a non-dom CDL.

FMCSA justified the move with at least five fatal crashes in 2025 involving non-domiciled CDL holders and audits showing serious problems in how states like California and Texas verified immigration status when issuing licenses.

A D.C. Circuit stay on November 10 paused enforcement, technically reverting states to pre-rule standards. But the market isn’t waiting.

Enforcement Shifting to the Private Sector

• DHS is running I-9 audits on California fleets.
• The Trump administration is pushing tougher CDL rules, framed as safety but criticized by NPR/LAist sources as "an immigration raid by another name."
• Insurers are already denying coverage to fleets employing non-dom drivers.

This is the backdrop for Highway’s new filter: a way for brokers and insurers to reduce liability exposure before regulators make the next move.

If a crash, theft, or lawsuit involves a non-dom license that regulators later say should never have been issued, nobody wants to be the party who kept tendering loads to that carrier.

Industry Reaction

• Supporters say it helps "filter out bad actors and bad companies."
• Critics argue Highway is "becoming stronger than the government," and exerting "too much control over carriers."

What It Means

If your team uses Highway, there are settings decisions to be made.

• Set your default: Turn the filter on/off (or lane-specific) and document the “why.”
• Create exceptions: Decide who approves overrides and what proof you need on file.
• Check your lanes: Know where non-dom–heavy capacity sits and identify backups.
• Communicate changes: If requirements shift, say it upfront. Hidden rules blow up fast.

TOGETHER WITH AUGMENT

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 🌎 Around The Freight Web

🦃 Turkey Rush. Butterball is already gearing up for Thanksgiving 2026, coordinating farms, processors, cold storage, and retailers to move millions of turkeys through one of the year’s most chaotic supply-chain peaks.

🔥 Denver Tanker Fire. A fuel tanker crashed beneath I-25 in Denver, spilling thousands of gallons of fuel and igniting a fire that unfortunately killed the driver and forced lane closures during the hazmat cleanup.

😔 FedEx Layoffs. FedEx is planning to lay off 856 employees as it shuts down a large Texas logistics facility. The layoff phases will commence in January. The facility will be closed by April.

💰 PA Funding Threat. U.S. Transportation Secretary Dean Duffy has threatened to withhold $75 million in funding from Pennsylvania, criticizing the state for allowing immigrant truck drivers to illegally obtain CDLs under its current licensing system.

🎣 THE FREIGHT CAVIAR CORNER

• FreightCaviar Podcast: We sat down with Per Højland, Executive Director of Network Operations at Saudia Airlines Cargo Company, Saudi Arabia's national cargo airline. Learn about key trade lanes, the expanding talent gap in aviation, and more. The episode is up now on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
• Manifest 2026: We're proud to be an Official Partner of Manifest: The Future of Supply Chain & Logistics conference, the premier event shaping what's next in freight and logistics. Save $200 on the current price with our link.
• Freightjobs.co. Now Hiring: Ship Smart Solutions Inc. is looking for a Freight Broker with Existing Customers in Montgomery, IL. Apply here.
• Shipper CRM: A FreightCaviar product built for brokers to find, track, and win shipper freight. Click here to learn more.
• FreightCaviar Forum: We launched a forum for brokers, carriers, and freight tech pros to connect, share insights, and trade industry intel.

FREIGHT HUMOR