Utah bill to end driver privilege card program for immigrants formulated, awaiting attention

SALT LAKE CITY — The proposal to end Utah's driver privilege card program, geared to a subset of immigrants that includes those in the country illegally, has been formulated and numbered.

Now HB187, sponsored by Utah Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton, sits in the Utah House Rules Committee, which serves as a gatekeeper of sorts for legislation, awaiting formal attention from Utah lawmakers.

"Great response, we have an illegal immigration crisis and it needs to be resolved," said Lee, alluding to the reaction the measure has gotten from his colleagues.

Lee put forward HB187 as the national debate surrounding illegal immigration intensifies. The driver privilege card program serves as a magnet to immigrants in the country illegally, he claims, and ending it would help temper the incentive for them to come to Utah.

"This is a priority for the White House," he said, alluding to President Donald Trump's focus on combating illegal immigration. "We are the only red state in America that allows illegal immigrants driving privilege cards."

On the flip side, Utah Sen. Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, defended the driving privilege card program as a matter of public safety and making sure that only properly vetted drivers are on Utah roads. Though immigrants in the country illegally are among those who can tap into the program, she stressed that it also serves others here legally under certain work and student visas.

"We're very concerned. But at the same time, I think my colleagues in the Utah State Legislature understand the importance of having ... people legally tested, trained and insured on the roads to keep every Utahn safe," she said.

Utah lawmakers approved legislation in 2005 creating the state's driver privilege program as a means of vetting would-be drivers in the state, regardless of migratory status. Those with driving privilege cards — who still have to provide proof of identity, pass a driving test and meet other requirements — may register their cars and get car insurance.

According to a 2024 report on the program by a state legislative policy analyst, driving privilege cards are geared to those "who cannot prove lawful presence in the United States" and are otherwise unable to get a normal Utah driver's license. The pool of applicants can include immigrants in the country illegally as well as those legally paroled in the country for humanitarian or other reasons.

A range of proposed provisions

Lee has put forward three versions of HB187, the original plus two substitutes, and all of them call for ending the driving privilege card program effective May 6. The varied versions also contain other provisions:

• The original and the first substitute contain provisions requiring Utah law enforcement to report those involved in car crashes who are in the country illegally to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. ICE enforces U.S. immigration law and is responsible for detaining and deporting those in the country illegally.
• The first and second substitute versions contain provisions that would allow the written driver's license test to be offered only in English. As is, the test is offered in several languages.
• The first and second substitutes also contain provisions stipulating that those in the country illegally would automatically be presumed to be at fault in car crashes for insurance purposes unless they can prove otherwise.
• The second substitute contains a provision letting insurance providers sell auto insurance to people without driver's licenses.

According to the 2024 report, Utah is one of 19 U.S. states plus Washington, D.C., that offers driving privileges to those who can't prove their lawful status. Lee says Utah is the only Republican-leaning state of the 19, which also include California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Minnesota, Illinois, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Hawaii.

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According to Hillary Koellner, spokeswoman for the Utah Department of Public Safety, which oversees the Utah Driver License Division, 8,206 new driver privilege cards were issued in 2025 and 33,923 such cards are currently valid in Utah. The state doesn't share information supplied by people applying for driver privilege cards with federal immigration authorities.

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