Tennessee Gov. Lee questions state rules denying licenses to immigrants legally able to work in U.S.

Gov. Bill Lee said Wednesday he is seeking more information about new rules imposed by state driver’s license administrators that have prevented immigrants legally authorized to work in the United States — including so-called “Dreamers” — from obtaining or renewing a Tennessee driver’s license.

Questioned by reporters, Lee said he had “just become aware of that.” The governor said he was trying to determine “what impact it actually does have and are there changes we need to make.” He questioned whether an interaction between state and federal laws has created “unintended consequences potentially.”

“That’s kind of what we’re trying to figure out right now,” Lee said.

Hundreds of individuals, among them long-time Tennessee license holders, have recently been blocked from obtaining or renewing licenses despite producing valid employment authorization cards issued by the federal government. Thousands more in Tennessee could be blocked when trying to renew their licenses, placing immigrants permitted to work in the United States at risk for arrest, detention and deportation if caught driving to work, school or the grocery store without a license. 

Until recently, the work permits were accepted as proof of valid immigration status for the purposes of obtaining a license. For many immigrants who are not permanent residents with Green Cards, the work permits serve as a primary document to demonstrate they are authorized to be in the United States.

Tennessee blocks driver’s licenses for Dreamers, other immigrants with U.S. work permits

A spokesperson for the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, which administers driver’s licenses, said last week the state’s change to a list of acceptable documents to obtain a license was prompted by one of the provisions of a 2025 law that took effect Jan. 1.  The spokesperson did not provide a response to fresh questions Wednesday about whether the department was reviewing the changes.

The law says temporary licenses may be issued to immigrants who have been “authorized by the federal government for a specific purpose and for a specified period of authorized stay.” 

Jason Pack, the department’s spokesperson, said the state’s position is that the work permit “does not provide sufficient information to verify an applicant’s lawful status.”

Immigrant advocates said they believe the state has only newly interpreted the state law to deny licenses in recent weeks. A state website listed the work permits as acceptable documentation as late as August, according to an online website archive. The legislation does not name acceptable or unacceptable documents.

Among those affected are so-called Dreamers, who belong to a federal immigration category known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. DACA recipients were brought here without legal status as children and are now protected from deportation. Immigration attorneys and advocates say multiple other categories of immigrants, including some asylum seekers, are also impacted.

Rep. John Ray Clemmons, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, questioned the state’s interpretation of the 2025 law and warned a large-scale denial of licenses would be “devastating” to tens of thousands of immigrant families in Tennessee, and to the local economy.  He urged business owners to advocate for impacted workers.

“These are individuals who are fully complying with the letter of the law, positively contributing to our communities and paying taxes just like everyone else,” Clemmons said in a statement. 

“It would appear that our state is attempting to put these legal residents in a situation where they either drive to work, risk getting cited and jeopardize their legal status or they stay home, get terminated by their employer and contribute little to nothing to our economy while their family struggles to find food and keep a roof over their head,” Clemmons said.

Reporter Sam Stockard contributed.