Illegal immigrants in New York will be eligible to apply for a driver’s license next week after a federal judge on Friday dismissed a legal case seeking to block the new law.
Republican county clerk Frank Merola had sought to obtain a preliminary injunction to block the controversial ‘Green Light Law,’ which allows those in New York to apply for a driver’s license, regardless of their immigration status.
The judge also knocked down Merola’s assertion that the new legislation would oblige him to offer voter registration to illegal immigrants.
“The Green Light law is legal and enforceable, and two separate federal courts have now already dismissed the meritless claims of two county clerks. Beginning Monday, the law will help make our roads safer, our economy stronger, and will allow immigrants to come out of the shadows to sign up as legal drivers in our state,” she said.
“We expect all public officials to comply with the law, and, as the state’s attorney and chief law enforcement officer, I will continue to vigorously defend it,” she added.
The Green Light Law, formerly known as The Driver’s License Access and Privacy Act, will come into effect on Monday, allowing illegal individuals to apply for and obtain driver’s licenses from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
However, applicants must show a combination of documents that prove their name, date of birth, and New York State residency, which include a foreign passport, a U.S. Municipal ID Card with photo and a foreign birth certificate.
Meanwhile, there are growing fears among some 27 county clerks over the integrity of the identification process used in the new law.
Among those who have expressed their concerns are Chautauqua County Clerk Larry Barmore, who has called on the state to delay the Green Light Law until next October.
In a news release issued Friday afternoon, Barmore said the state’s training for clerks’ offices had not been adequate enough to ensure the integrity of the identification process for driver’s license application.
Furthermore, he claimed there had been two “hastily delivered” webinars and a conference call regarding the new law.
“Because of these lax regulations, implementation of the State law at this time would create unacceptable security risks as the loopholes allow for nefarious people to obtain a New York State Standard Driver Licenses and use it to commit bank fraud, identity theft, credit card fraud, human trafficking, and other criminal activities,” he said.