As of Mon., Dec. 22, immigrants known as Dreamers received the legal rights to earn their driver’s licenses. People lined up at the Department of Motor Vehicles early that morning  to take advantage of the new law.

In order to be eligible, Dreamers must have been 30 years old or younger on June. 15, 2012 and have been brought to the United States illegally before the age of 16.

Many Dreamers that live in Arizona were already driving without licenses before the law was passed. Allowing them to get their licenses may not have much of an effect on their driving habits, but it will have a personal and emotional impact on the person getting his or her license.

“It’s going to give them more confidence, more freedom to do what they should be doing, going to school and to work,” Officer Gabriel Gomez said.

President Barack Obama instituted the program in 2012, but Arizona banned Dreamers from receiving any state benefits,- including driver’s licenses.

Former Governor Jan Brewer fought for the state’s right to decide who would be allowed to drive and who would not. Her emergency appeal to the Supreme Court was turned down.

“There’s going to be people that won’t like it no matter what, and they’ll be even more angry now that individuals that are undocumented are allowed to get their licenses. Then there’s going to be the people that support them, and see this as a step in the right direction,” Gomez said.

There are some that would want to implement a bill that requires the words ‘non citizen’ to be stamped on the licenses.  However, no bill suggesting special identification on Dreamers’ licenses is currently before the legislature.

There are an estimated 22,000 Dreamers in Arizona. Providing them with their licenses may not make much of a statistical difference in that, if all Dreamers were to get their licenses, the amount of licensed drivers on the road would increase by only about 0.5%.

Dreamers will be allowed to keep their driver’s licenses until their work authorization documents expire. After this happens, their driver’s licenses will be revoked until renewal.