81,000 Illegal Immigrants Will Soon Be Eligible Under Minnesota’s ‘Driver’s License for All’ Scheme

Minnesota will begin granting driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants beginning next month, with the state ensuring that applicant information will not be revealed to authorities.

“The Driver’s License for All (DL4All) law will allow Minnesotans to begin the process of getting a standard Class D instruction permit or driver’s license or a standard identification card. The law eliminates the need to show proof of legal presence in the United States,” according to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) website. The DL4All program will be available from Oct. 1, 2023.

Around 81,000 undocumented immigrants in the state are estimated to be eligible for driver’s licenses under the program.

During a news conference, Jody-Kay Peterson, director of the Minnesota DPS’s Driver Services Program, was asked about the risk of deportation illegal immigrants would face when they apply for a driver’s license under DL4All.

Ms. Peterson replied that the department will not submit applicants’ personal information to immigration authorities, according to AP.

DL4All was signed into law by Democrat Governor Tim Walz in March. Prior to this, Minnesota required license applicants to either show proof of citizenship or lawful presence in the United States. The law was formed two decades ago and prevented people without a legal status from securing a driver’s license.

At the time, then-Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a Republican, implemented the law citing security concerns following the Sept. 11 attacks.

Democrats who supported DL4All insisted that the program would make roads safer as it would mean more vetting for drivers. However, Republicans warned that the measure could encourage illegal immigration, enable potential terrorists to vote and fly illegally in the country, and also contribute to voter fraud.

When the bill was in the Senate, Sen. Glenn Gruenhagen (R-Minn.) asked his Democrat colleagues as to “what in your bill prevents that terrorist from coming to Minnesota, getting a driver’s license, and getting on an airline and committing a terrorist act?”

To get a Class D license, the applicant must be 21 years or above and pass written, driving, and vision tests. As illegal immigrants can apply for the license, they can provide foreign passports, foreign birth certificates, foreign adoption certificates, and certain immigration filing and approval notices as proof of identity. The DPS cannot ask applicants about their citizenship or immigration status.

While the DPS is prohibited from sharing application information with agencies like the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), there is one exception: under a court order.

According to data from the National Conference of State Legislatures, 18 other states and Washington, D.C., provide driver’s licenses to residents irrespective of immigration status: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.

Getting governments to issue a driver’s license to illegal immigrants is a key area of focus for those who lobby for immigrant causes since driving without a license is a criminal offense which can place such people in ICE custody.