The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has lifted a ban on New York residents joining and renewing memberships in Trusted Traveler programs and now faces additional legal action from the state.
DHS issued the ban in February, citing the state's "green light" law concerning the issuance of driver's licenses. The law enables all New Yorkers age 16 or older to apply for non-commercial driver's licenses regardless of citizenship status and without a Social Security number and blocks immigration and border officials from accessing the New York Department of Motor Vehicles' database, enabling undocumented residents to obtain driver's licenses without fear of retribution from immigration officials.
In a statement last week, DHS said New York has amended the law to allow sharing records as needed for individuals applying for Trusted Traveler programs. DHS is continuing to challenge the law but has lifted those restrictions.
"We appreciate the information sharing to [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] for the trusted travel program, which enables DHS to move forward and begin once again processing New York residents under the Trusted Travel Program," Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf said in a statement. "Nonetheless, local New York law continues to maintain provisions that undermine the security of the American people and purport to criminalize information sharing between law enforcement entities."
New York already had sued both DHS and CBP over the ban, and in a filing related to that suit last week, DHS noted it had made "inaccurate or misleading statements" regarding New York's law, according to a report from NPR. Several other states have similar laws but were not hit with Trusted Traveler bans.
In a briefing last week, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said New York could be owed civil damages from the ban and called on U.S. Congress to investigate DHS's handling of the ban.
"It was a clear abuse of government power for political purposes," Cuomo said. "It has hurt New Yorkers and hurt our economy, and it's only one in a barrage of political abuses that we've endured by this federal government."