[NYS] DMV Hires 300+ As Undocumented Immigrants Line Up For Licenses

DMV Hires 300+ As Undocumented Immigrants Line Up For Licenses
Long lines have stretched outside DMV offices since a new law allowed immigrants living in the country unlawfully to apply for licenses.


"LONG ISLAND, NY — Long lines have stretched for days outside Department of Motor Vehicles offices across Long Island, ever since a law was enacted in December allowing immigrants who are in the country unlawfully to apply for driver's licenses in New York State.

According to the New York State DMV, the Driver's License Access and Privacy Act, or the Green Light Law, was enacted on June 17 and took effect on Dec. 16 — and left DMV staffers scrambling to accommodate a deluge of individuals who have begun lining up in the early morning hours.

Lisa Koumjian, assistant commissioner for communications for the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, said more than 300 people have been hired by the DMV so far to meet new demands. "The number goes up every few days," she said. "We are actively hiring. At at least 270 of those new hires are in New York City and Long Island locations."

Along with the dire need for new personnel, she said, there has been a demand for increased space. "We've got a lot of reconverted conference rooms. Any nook and cranny where we can fit physical work stations, we have added those footprints," she said.

Staff new and old have undergone comprehensive training to understand the Green Light Law, Koumjian added.
And not only that, but locations across Long Island and New York City are now open at 7:30 a.m., a full hour earlier, to greet the long lines. "We're really seeing the most customers in the morning," she said.

While Koumjian could not immediately say which offices on Long Island were seeing the most volume, she did say that Long Island and New York City offices in general were the ones most greatly impacted.

The Green Light Law allows all New Yorkers age 16 and older to apply for a standard, not for federal purpose, non-commercial driver license or learner permit regardless of their citizenship or lawful status in the United States; driver license applicants who have never been issued a Social Security Number are eligible to apply.

Those applying must sign an affidavit of never having been issued a Social Security number; and, in addition to proof that the DMV currently accepts, can also show other forms of proof, including a valid, unexpired consular identification document issued by a consulate; a valid foreign driver license that includes a photo and which is either unexpired or expired for less than 24 months; a permanent resident card, either unexpired or expired for less than 24 months; an employment authorization card; a border crossing card; a U.S. municipal ID card with photo; a foreign marriage or divorce record or court-issued name change decree, or a foreign birth certificate.

Immigration advocates across Long Island applauded the measure on a day many deemed "historic" as undocumented individuals were granted licenses for the first time.

"It took bravery, not politics, to see it through," said Minerva Perez, executive director of Organización Latino-Americana, or OLA, on the East End, after lawmakers first passed the legislation. "More than anything, my message is one that urges all of us to work together to make this a success for New York. Not to gloat. But to truly work together as only New Yorkers can. Then we will have a success worth hollering about."

She added that although many detractors have said those advocating for the measure do not care about the safety of New York residents: "Of course they care. This . . . is about safety. It is not about anything else. It is not about politics. It's a non-partisan issue."

Despite the victory, advocacy groups did point out that the first day was not without some confusion.

"We all knew this day was going to be a big, fat mess," said Sister Mary Beth Moore, who works with immigrants in Hampton Bays through the Centro Corazon de Maria, and who is also the chairperson of Neighbors In Support of Immigrants in Hampton Bays, on Dec. 16. "We knew it, and we couldn't find any way of preventing it." The DMV, she said, wasn't prepared for the sheer number of individuals who came pouring in; she said she felt for the DMV employees "up to their eyeballs" in work who were trying to handle the "wave of pent-up desire and need for licenses that split open today."

After the first day, the DMV set out to bolster their ranks, hiring hundreds. . . ."

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