At City Hall on Wednesday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio held a hearing on legislation that would create a municipal identification card for New Yorkers.

'This is very exciting and very important for the future of New York City as a city for everyone, a city for people from all over the world, and the ultimate city of immigrants which we have been our entire history, and this is our legislation that creates our new municipal identification card program, Intro 253," de Blasio said.

The City Council passed the legislation in a 43-3 vote on June 26. Two key sponsors drove its passage: Queens City Councilman Daniel Dromm and Brooklyn City Councilman Carlos Menchaca, chair of the Immigration Committee, and the first Mexican-American on the council.

The cards are expected to be issued next year. To get an ID, an applicant will need a passport or birth certificate and proof of residency through a utility bill or pay stub.

De Blasio added, "This brings us closer to fairness for all regardless of their documentation status — the results of a broad coalition of supporters over many years. When good policy happens in this building, it is because advocates and community organizers work for years to make it happen."

Many New Yorkers do not drive and do not have driver's licenses, the most frequently used form of identification. Many undocumented people lack a universal form of identification and are, therefore, unable to sign leases, open bank accounts or even have library cards. Under Intro 253, transgender New Yorkers will for be the first time be able to select which gender their IDs indicate they are. And homeless New Yorkers will have greater access to city services. But to create equity, the mayor's office is working on a way to make all New Yorkers want the card and is working with institutions to offer benefits and discounts. Details will be completed by the end of the year.

The mayor said the municipal identification card will not conflict with state or federal laws and will not be appropriate for interstate or international travel.

"This municipal identification embodies the true one New York always aspires to be," said Linda Sarsour, executive director of the Arab American Association of New York. She added, "This was by no means ... an easy process, edits of legislation, long meetings, consultations with memberships and associations. A cornerstone of the municipal identification [card] has been New York Police Department acceptance. Too often, New Yorkers who would have received a summons would be brought into precincts for not being able to show proper identification.

"The documents [collected as part of the application for the municipal identification card] will be housed at the Human Resources Administration, not the NYPD. If the NYPD needed access to a file, they would need a judicial subpoena or a judicial warrant."