Andrew M. Cuomo, the governor of New York, is set for a lengthy court battle with clerks in Erie, Rensselaer, Niagara, and Allegany over his newly signed law granting driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants.
This week, the Democratic governor joined a long list of states that passed bills into law, making it possible for undocumented residing in the U.S to obtain driver’s licenses.
While the new piece of legislation dubbed the Green Light Bill will only go into effect in six months, some officials in the Big Apple have already vowed to attack Cuomo in court.
The clerks have also made it clear that they have no plans to issue licenses in Upstate New York.
Instead, people wishing to apply will be asked to head to the auto bureau in Syracuse, which is more than two hours away.
Michael Kearns, the Erie County clerk, issued a letter saying this his decision not to grant licenses is based on the fact that he believes that the law conflicts with federal policy.
Mr. Kerns explained: “In the memo of the bill, they talk about the reason why they’re passing this bill is to make sure that people who are here illegally can get to and from work. It is illegal to hire people in the state of New York or anywhere that are here illegally.”
Kerns said his staff is not trained to verify foreign means of identification properly and he also fears that some of the undocumented immigrants might “accidentally” register to vote after obtaining their licenses.
Rensselaer County Clerk Frank Merola also bashed the new law and stated that he would refuse undocumented immigrants driver’s licenses because he fears it will be confused with the ones given to American citizens.
Merola, who had a long list of unfounded arguments, said: “There’s no right to a driver’s license. It’s a privilege. It’s not a privilege we should be giving to someone that’s here illegally. I’m not anti-immigrant. My wife is a naturalized citizen. My son is also a police officer, so I think more about law enforcement. I’ve never heard anybody in law enforcement come out and say this is a good idea.”
Emma Kreyche, an activist who is part of Green Light N.Y., defended the bill by explaining that Merola’s arguments are inaccurate and added: “There’s no evidence to support this claim. I think it’s a smokescreen. Undocumented immigrants are not interested in committing crimes that would lead to their deportation. People just want to drive. This is a red herring.”
Cuomo hesitated before signing the bill into law because he thought the Trump administration could use the information to deport some immigrants.
