NYS Senator Luis Sepúlveda and Assemblymember De Los Santos, MSW Introduce Bill for Reciprocity of Driver's Licenses Between the State of New York and the Dominican Republic. S9571

Honoring the commitment to build solutions for my constituents from within the government, NYS Senator Luis Sepúlveda and Assemblymember De Los Santos have submitted a bill that would direct the State of New York to discuss with representatives of the Dominican State to reach a reciprocity agreement on the driver's licenses of both jurisdictions.

Essentially, a person holding a New York State driver's license could exchange it for a Dominican Republic driver's license if he or she becomes a lawful resident of that jurisdiction and vice versa.

As a result, for the first time we would be reaching an agreement where thousands of Dominicans living in the State of New York could exchange their Dominican licenses for one from the State of New York in a fast, easy way and without governmental bureaucracy if they comply with all the requirements of the law.

For the first time a bill like this is being presented before the New York legislature and I must thank Assemblymember Manny De Los Santos, MSW for being my colleague in this effort on behalf of the Assembly and to Congressman Adriano Espaillat for his leadership and guidance in this process. Likewise, I have presented this bill thanks to the conversations held with important leaders of the Dominican Republic who seek to look out for the welfare, as I do, of their compatriots who live and work in New York. This is possible thanks to the support we have received from our counterpart in the Dominican Republic, Senator Alexis Victoria Yeb, Senate President Eduardo Estrella and the President of the Dominican Republic Luis Abinader. Thanks to the support of these leaders and the support of the leadership of New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, we achieved the first agreement and exchange of ideas with the Senate of the Dominican Republic. Both institutions are in discussions on initiatives such as this one that reaffirm the brotherhood between the two nations, the collaboration and the desire to work together for the good of our communities. 

Assemblymember Manny De Los Santos said:  "As we continue to live in an evermore interconnected world, where many of the 4.5 million foreign-born New Yorkers frequently travel internationally to visit family, it is essential that we have strong relationships with other nations. I would like to thank Senator Sepúlveda and the government of the Dominican Republic for working with me to make it easier for residents of New York State and the Dominican Republic to obtain drivers licenses after becoming a permanent resident. Together, we can remove red tape to improve the lives of New Yorkers."