MA Legislators Override Baker's Veto Of Immigrant License Bill

MASSACHUSETTS — The Massachusetts Senate voted Thursday to approve a bill that allows immigrants in the Commonwealth to obtain legal driver's licenses, regardless of immigration status.

Gov. Charlie Baker vetoed the Work & Family Mobility Act a day after the House and Senate enacted it in May, but the votes of the House and the Senate this week override Baker's veto. The House voted 119-36 Wednesday in favor of the bill. The Senate followed suit with a vote of 32-8 Thursday.

The new law will take effect July 1, 2023, allowing undocumented immigrants living in Massachusetts to get legal driver's licenses.

Sixteen other U.S. states and the District of Columbia have similar laws. The immigrant community and supporters in the Bay State have been advocating for this right for over 16 years.

Baker has long opposed such a bill, arguing it would make verifying the identities of potential applicants impossible for the Registry of Motor Vehicles. In his veto message, Baker said the legislation "significantly increases the risk that noncitizens will be registered to vote," a possibility that bill supporters have rebutted.

Supporters of the bill argue it would make driving in Massachusetts safer.

"We are a nation of immigrants, and our Commonwealth continues to be profoundly and positively shaped by immigrants from all over the world," Senate President Karen Spilka said in a written statement last month. "They deserve to be able to safely get to work and school, care for their families and participate in the lives of their communities."