Calif. DMV prepares for undocumented residents
By Nathan Rott, NPR
California residents who are living without documentation soon will be eligible to apply for driver’s licenses, thanks to a new law that takes effect in the new year.
The state’s Department of Motor Vehicles is expecting 1.6 million immigrants to apply in the first few years, and law enforcement, community groups and others are preparing for the surge.
They’re driving all over the state — in California’s cities, in rural areas, commuting to work and school or just traveling. Like most people do — only in the shadows.
California isn’t the first state to have this kind of law — Connecticut is implementing a similar one now, and a handful of other states already allow undocumented immigrants to apply for driver’s licenses or card equivalents — but it’s is certainly the biggest. The expectation of 1.6 million new applicants has spurred the state’s DMV to add 800 employees to help with the transition.