SALEM — A law passed by the Oregon Legislature in the summer of 2019 allowing people without documentation of legal residence to obtain a driver’s license in the state went into effect on Jan. 1.

Because the Oregon Driver and Motor Vehicle Services is closed for the New Year’s holiday, and then the weekend, the first licenses won’t be issued until Jan. 4 at the earliest.

Those licenses will not trigger automatic voter registration, unlike other Oregon driver’s licenses.

While the new law gets rid of the requirement to prove U.S. citizenship or legal residency to receive an Oregon driver’s license, those wishing to get their license must still show proof they live in Oregon, and then pay a fee and pass a driving test.

Proponents of the new law believe it will benefit more than just undocumented immigrants — they believe domestic violence survivors, the elderly and others may also have trouble accessing citizenship paperwork.

This isn’t the first time Oregon has allowed those without documentation of citizenship to get a driver’s license. Previously, the state issued eight-year driver’s licenses without requiring such documentation, but the last of those licenses expired in 2016.

Currently, Oregonians applying for a driver’s license must show proof of U.S. citizenship or legal presence in the country. The new law allows the licensee to submit a written statement that they have not been assigned a Social Security number.