On Sunday, Governor Pat Quinn signed into law a bill that will help ensure every Illinois motorist be properly licensed to drive and now will include the 250,000 illegal immigrant motorist.
He was joined by legislators, community leaders and public safety advocates when he signed the bill.
According to the Illinois Highway Safety Coalition, unlicensed and uninsured drivers are involved in almost 80,000 accidents in the state each year, resulting in $660 million in damage.
Quinn, an early supporter of the bill says unlicensed drivers present a serious, but preventable safety risk to all Illinois drivers.
“There`s a passage in scripture, if you save one life you save the world. And that`s why we`re here today, coming together to save lives,” Quinn says.
The law will take around 10 months to go into effect.
In order to qualify for a temporary driver`s license or TVDL; applicants, not eligible for a social security number, must have lived in Illinois for more than a year. An applicant must pass a driving safety test and carry auto insurance. The driver`s license cannot be used as official identification and can be revoked if a license-holder is found not carrying insurance.