Brown Approves Driver's Licenses for Immigrants

Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 2189 into law late this past Sunday. The bill is authored by Assemblyman Gil Cedillo of Los Angeles.  He has worked years to get immigrants the right to drive legally in California. The new law will allow some undocumented Californians between ages 16 to 31 to obtain driver licenses using paperwork issued by President Obama’s work permit program. Many can fill out paperwork themselves, but advocates warn that scammers have been aggressively selling their purported services to immigrants. Some are charging $1,000 to $2,500 per applicant.

Assemblyman Gil Cedillo argues that this will ensure immigrants are better drivers because they will have to be tested and it will make it more likely that they will then obtain car insurance. Cedillo said in a statement that California was the first state to issue driver licenses for the group helped by the federal work permit program and that the new California law applies to about 350,000 California residents.

Those eligible must currently be in school, have graduated from high school or have been honorably discharged from the Coast Guard or Armed Forces. They must have arrived in the country before they were 16 -- and have been under 31 as of June 15. And they must not have been convicted of a felony, "significant misdemeanor: or three or more misdemeanors, among other requirements.