immigrant drivers licenses

Sarah Takasaki is in a dimly lit classroom at South Congregational Church in downtown Springfield, sitting at a computer with a Spanish-speaking immigrant who’s undocumented.

It’s been a decades-long wait, but unauthorized immigrants in Massachusetts finally will be able to obtain driver’s licenses starting July 1.

The city has awarded more than $700,000 in grants to 15 nonprofits in Boston to provide additional legal services to immigrants.

With the statewide election just weeks away, proponents of a new law that would give undocumented immigrants driver’s licenses continue to campaign on claims that the provision will make Massachusetts roads safer.

After Republican activists gathered enough signatures to make it onto the ballot, the choice to repeal a state law granting the right for undocumented residents to obtain driver’s licenses will now officially be before Massachusetts voters this fall.