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A federal judge on Tuesday cleared the way for New York’s so-called green light law, ruling against the Trump administration’s effort to prevent the state from granting people driver’s licenses without having to prove they are in the United States legally.
U.S. District Judge Anne M. Nardacci found that the Justice Department — which sued New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Attorney General Letitia James in February — failed to prove its claims that the state law seeks to override federal law or that the action unlawfully regulates or constitutes unlawful discrimination against the federal government.
“As I have said from the beginning, our laws protect the rights of all New Yorkers and keep our communities safe,” James said in a statement. “I will always stand up for New Yorkers and the rule of law.”
U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi claimed in announcing the lawsuit that Hochul and James were prioritizing “illegal aliens over American citizens,” as a controversial state law prevents federal agents trying to enforce immigration laws from seeing… Illegal immigrants Criminal driving records during a traffic stop.
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The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against New York Governor Kathy Hochul and the state’s Attorney General Letitia James in February. (Getty Images)
Nardacci wrote in her ruling that her job was not to evaluate the desirability of the law as a political issue, but rather to determine whether the Trump administration’s arguments substantiate its claims that the law violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which states that federal laws supersede state laws.
The administration “failed to mention such an allegation,” Nardacci wrote.
The Green Light Law, also known as the Driver License Access and Privacy Act, was adopted in part to improve safety on the roads, where people sometimes drive without a license or without passing a driving test. Under this measure, it is easier for license holders to obtain car insurance.
The law stipulates that people who do not have a valid Social Security number can provide alternative forms of identification, including valid passports and driver’s licenses issued in other countries. Applicants still must obtain a driver’s permit and pass a road test to qualify for a “regular driver’s licence.”
The legislation does not apply to commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs).
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The Justice Department’s lawsuit argued that the law was a “direct assault on federal immigration laws, and the federal authorities that administer them,” citing a provision that requires the state DMV commissioner to notify people who are in the country illegally when the federal immigration agency requests their information.
The lawsuit also alleged that it might be easier to enforce the Trump administration’s immigration agenda if federal authorities had unfettered access to New York driver information.
The green light law went into effect in 2019, but came under renewed scrutiny after a fatal shooting in Vermont in January that left a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent dead near the northern border with Canada after a traffic stop involving a German national.
“Any information that could help law enforcement stay safe as they carry out their duties has been largely deleted under this green light law,” Hector Garza, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, told Fox News Digital at the time.
A Department of Homeland Security vehicle stands at the southbound entrance of Interstate 91 in Newport, Vermont, where a US Border Patrol agent was shot and killed during a traffic stop, on January 20, 2025. (David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)
“What [the Green Light Law] “What it does is it prevents law enforcement officers from obtaining any type of information regarding any recordings with the state,” Garza added.
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But Nardacci, echoing the appeals court’s ruling in the county clerk’s earlier challenge to the law, wrote that the information “remains available to federal immigration authorities” through a statutory court order or court order.
New York is one of twelve states that allow undocumented immigrants to drive.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.