New law allows many undocumented individuals to apply for driver's license

Undocumented individuals in California can soon apply for a driver’s license because of new legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown over the weekend.

The law, Assembly Bill 2189, applies to individuals who meet the criteria for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which President Barack Obama announced in July.

Starting in January 2013 (sic), documentation of deferred action will satisfy the Department of Motor Vehicle’s requirement to prove lawful residence in the United States to apply for a driver’s license, according to the newly-signed law.

To be a part of the deferred action program, individuals must have traveled to the United States before they were 16 years old, currently be between the ages of 15 and 31, and have lived continuously in the country for the past five years, the Daily Bruin reported in August.

The measure is estimated to allow about 400,000 undocumented individuals to obtain driver’s licenses in the state, according to the Sacramento Bee.

“This is an important first step to making sure our highways are safe for all Californians,” Assemblyman Gil Cedillo (D-Los Angeles), who introduced the law, in a prepared statement today. “I look forward to continuing to work with (Brown’s) office to make sure that all motorists in this state are licensed, tested and insured.”

Opponents of the law say the state should be more cautious about issuing driver’s licenses to undocumented individuals than stipulated in the new law, because they can be used for many other identification purposes, according to the Sacramento Bee.

Compiled by Lawrence Han, Bruin contributor.

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