Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.
By Stephen Louis
As previously reported in CityLaw, on February 12, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice sued New York State in U.S. District Court in Albany, seeking a permanent injunction barring further implementation of the State’s “Green Light Law,” based on its provisions that limit federal access to information regarding undocumented driver’s license holders. The state law, enacted in 2019, limited access to records by ICE and similar agencies to those with a lawful court order or judicial warrant.
DOJ argued that these provisions were violative of the Supremacy Clause by being in conflict with federal law. On March 25, the New York Attorney General’s office, representing the State, responded with a motion to dismiss the complaint. After further briefing, the matter has been pending before Judge Anne Nardacci since May.
On December 23, 2025, Judge Nardacci granted the New York Attorney General’s motion and dismissed the complaint. Judge Nardacci rejected DOJ’s preemption claims – that federal law barred state laws that restricted sharing of immigration status information with federal authorities. The Judge also rejected DOJ’s argument that the Green Light Law directly regulated the federal government and discriminated against the federal government. To date it is not clear whether DOJ will appeal the ruling.
In her decision, Judge Nardacci noted that the Green Light Law only applied to “standard” driver’s licenses, and not to Real ID or Enhanced licenses, which are required for air travel, or to commercial driver’s licenses.
New York Attorney General Letitia James put out a statement hailing the decision: “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.”
In the meantime, a new front has opened regarding driver’s licenses issued by New York State. On December 12, 2025, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy announced that an audit of commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration indicated that the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has been improperly issuing CDLs to non-citizens who do not have long-term work authorizations.
USDOT stated that unless New York worked to revoke those CDLs, it could withhold $73 million in federal highway funding and could withhold authorization for New York to issue commercial licenses. New York DMV, which has been given 30 days to respond formally, immediately rejected the accusation, saying it was in compliance with federal rules. This is one chapter of a nationwide effort by USDOT to restrict issuance of CDLs to non-citizens, targeting a number of states. This followed a traffic accident in Florida in
August, when an undocumented truck driver allegedly made an illegal u-turn, resulting in the deaths of three persons. In November, California agreed to revoke 17,000 CDLs held by non-citizens that USDOT said were improperly issued, although as of this writing California has delayed implementation of the revocations to ensure it does not mistakenly revoke proper licenses. [For more context, read CityLaw’s previous reporting on this topic: New York’s Green Light Law Hits Flashing Yellow]
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Stephen Louis is Distinguished Fellow and Counsel for the Center for New York City and State Law at New York Law School.