From Fox News: 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 block the state from giving people driver’s licenses without requiring proof that they are in the U.S. 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 — had failed to prove its claims that the state law sought to invalidate federal law or that the measure unlawfully regulates or unlawfully discriminates against the federal government.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi alleged when announcing the lawsuit that Hochul and James were prioritizing “illegal aliens over American citizens,” as the controversial state law blocks federal agents trying to enforce immigration laws from seeing illegal immigrants’ criminal driving records during traffic stops.
The DOJ’s lawsuit argued that the law was “a frontal assault on the federal immigration laws, and the federal authorities that administer them.”
Citing a provision that mandates the state’s DMV commissioner to inform individuals residing in the country illegally when a federal immigration agency requests their information, the lawsuit alleges that it could be more straightforward to enforce the Trump administration’s immigration agenda if federal authorities had unrestricted access to New York’s driver information.
The administration “failed to state such a claim,” Nardacci wrote in the ruling. Nardacci said her job was not to evaluate the law as a policy matter, just whether administration’s arguments prove its claims.
James commented on the win, stating, “As I said from the start, our laws protect the rights of all New Yorkers and keep our communities safe.
“I will always stand up for New Yorkers and the rule of law.”
Opponents disagree that the law improves safety.
“Any information that can help law enforcement stay safe as they conduct their duties has pretty much been taken away with this Green Light Law,” Hector Garza, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, explained to Fox News Digital. “What [the Green Light Law] does, is that it prevents law enforcement agents from getting any type of information in regards to any registrations that the state has,” Garza added. “For example, before we engage in traffic stops, typically law enforcement will always conduct a vehicle registration check to see if there’s any warrants to see if that person is considered armed and dangerous.”
The ‘Green Light Law’ allows the state to award driver’s licenses without the recipient proving they are in the country legally. https://t.co/QnfwzIAMjb
— WBEN NewsRadio 930AM (@WBEN) December 24, 2025
🚨ICYMI🚨
A Biden-appointed judge dismissed the Trump administration’s lawsuit challenging New York’s Green Light Law, allowing the state to continue issuing driver’s licenses to illegal aliens.
U.S. District Judge Anne M. Nardacci ruled that the DOJ—which filed suit in… pic.twitter.com/0vLT1lgHmJ
— Breanna Morello (@BreannaMorello) December 24, 2025
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