The Enforce Immigration or Lose Transportation Act would encourage better cooperation and prioritize safety by conditioning transportation funding to states based on compliance with federal immigration laws.
Condition federal transportation funding to states on their compliance with federal immigration laws.
Occurrences
Allow the Secretary of Transportation to withhold certain funds from sanctuary jurisdictions.
A bill to amend title 23, United States Code, to condition Federal highway funding on State compliance with Federal immigration enforcement policies related to driver's licensing and information sharing
The legislation aims to block certain federal funds to states that issue driver licenses to illegal immigrants or fail to share immigration enforcement information with the Department of Homeland Security.
Evidence
On February 4, 2026, Senator Tom Cotton introduced S.3773, a bill aiming to amend title 23 of the United States Code to condition federal highway funding on state compliance with federal immigration enforcement policies related to driver's licensing and information sharing. The bill was read twice and referred to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.
On December 3, 2025, Senator Tom Cotton introduced the American Citizens First Act, which aims to tighten immigration standards to protect American citizens. The bill proposes ending federal benefits for non-U.S. citizens, allowing the Secretary of Homeland Security to strip citizenship from naturalized persons involved in certain activities, expediting removal proceedings for asylum seekers, and reviewing Afghan refugees admitted since January 20, 2021.
On October 14, 2025, Senator Tom Cotton sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, urging a review of current rules that allow illegal immigrants to obtain financial services and access the U.S. banking system. He expressed concern that major financial institutions accept foreign documents as primary identification without verifying immigration status, allowing illegal aliens to establish financial roots and integrate economically while bypassing legal channels.
On July 15, 2025, Senator Tom Cotton introduced the Constitutional Citizenship Clarification Act, aiming to make children of illegal immigrants, terrorists, and foreign spies ineligible for birthright citizenship. The legislation seeks to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to clarify that no child is eligible for birthright citizenship if their parents are unlawfully present in the United States, present for diplomatic purposes, or engaged in hostile operations against the U.S.
On May 23, 2019, Senator Tom Cotton reintroduced the Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act, aiming to end sanctuary city policies that prevent local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. The bill proposes withholding certain non-law enforcement federal grant funds from jurisdictions that forbid their local law enforcement officers from cooperating with federal immigration officials.
On February 12, 2020, Senator Tom Cotton joined Senator Marsha Blackburn in introducing the Stop Greenlighting Driver Licenses for Illegal Immigrants Act. The legislation aims to block certain federal funds to states that issue driver licenses to illegal immigrants or fail to share immigration enforcement information with the Department of Homeland Security.
On October 16, 2025, Senator Tom Cotton, along with other lawmakers, introduced the Secure Commercial Driver Licensing Act of 2025. The legislation aims to prevent illegal immigrants from obtaining Commercial Driver's Licenses (CDLs) and holds states accountable that refuse to follow federal law in this regard. The bill proposes requiring all CDL testing to be conducted only in English and empowers the Secretary of Transportation to suspend or revoke a state's authority to issue non-domiciled CDLs if found non-compliant with federal standards.
Assessments
Senator Tom Cotton repeatedly introduced legislation seeking to condition federal transportation or related funding to states' compliance with federal immigration laws, as evidenced by multiple bills and initiatives from 2019 through 2026. However, there is no evidence any of these bills were enacted or that such a policy was implemented. The repeated and substantial legislative efforts qualify for the effort badge, but the core promise of actually conditioning funding on compliance with immigration laws was never fulfilled.