It was a moment Jose Diaz knew he did n't want to miss . The day laborer and undocumented immigrant waited for more than 10 years to see it . `` I missed work today , '' he said , `` but I felt like I had to be here . '' Diaz was in the crowd cheering after California Gov . Jerry Brown signed a law Thursday that will allow undocumented immigrants to get driver 's licenses in his state . `` This is only the first step , '' Brown said from the steps of Los Angeles City Hall , adding that he hopes other states will follow California 's example . `` When a million people without their documents drive legally and with respect in the state of California , the rest of this country will have to stand up and take notice , '' he said . `` No longer are undocumented people in the shadows . They are alive and well and respected in the state of California . '' The new measure , known as Assembly Bill 60 , requires the California Department of Motor Vehicle issue driver 's licenses to undocumented immigrants who can prove their identities , have established California residency and pass driving exams . The law goes into effect no later than January 1 , 2015 . Details about how the new licenses will look and the exact process for obtaining them are still in the works . But even so , supporters of the measure cheered the signing of the law . `` To have a license is not a luxury . It is a necessity , because in cars we go to work , to school and shopping and without a license really we are limited in many things , '' said Frida Hinojosa , an undocumented immigrant . For more than a year , driver 's licenses and other state benefits have been at the heart of a battle in the nationwide immigration debate . Supporters of licenses for undocumented immigrants argue that it 's safer to have more drivers trained and insured , and opponents argue that such systems are rife with fraud . The rules vary from state to state . In January , New Mexico Gov . Susana Martinez said she would push to repeal the state law allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain driver 's licenses . That same month , the governor of Illinois signed a new law that would allow undocumented immigrants to get temporary licenses . In at least 45 states , officials have said recipients of deferred action -- the Obama administration 's program for young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children -- are eligible for driver 's licenses , according to the National Immigration Law Center . But in some states , like Arizona and Nebraska , officials have stepped up efforts to stop licenses from being issued , the law center said .
Gov . Jerry Brown : ` ` No longer are undocumented people in the country '' The new law will allow undocumented people to get driver 's licenses . Brown says he hopes other states will follow California 's example . Driver 's licenses have been at the center of a nationwide immigration debate .