Tim Graham / Tim Graham

Traffic on the highway heading out of Miami at Opa Locka Boulevard, Florida, United States of America

The Canadian Automobile Association is warning their members to take special precautions when traveling internationally — to Florida.

That's because the Sunshine State last year passed a largely unnoticed law that requires foreign drivers to own largely-unused "international driver's permits" from their home country.

The legislation, which went into effect January 1, was intended to make sure all Florida drivers held a license translated into English.

But it also meant scores of snowbirds flew down from the Great White North in 2013 not knowing they were breaking the law. 

Florida lawmakers are apologizing to Canadians, British and other English-speaking countries that have been unintentionally targeted as a result of the law, and Florida's Highway Patrol has suspended its enforcement.

Still, there are questions about the impact on car rentals and insurance coverage for foreigners driving in the state. The state's tourism website, Visit Florida, is urging visitors to consult with an "in-country travel professional for guidance."

That's why the CAA, Canada's version of AAA, has on the homepage of its website guidelines for the new law and FAQ on how to obtain an international driver's license, which costs $25.

"Until the law is changed, we continue to recommend Canadians traveling to Florida should consider obtaining an IDP," the site reads.

That change could come soon, as state officials are quickly realizing some of the unwanted consequences of the bill.

"We will work with the legislature to amend the law this year so it does not burden international visitors to our state, who make up an important part of our tourism industry," said John Tupps, deputy press secretary for Florida Gov. Rick Scott, on Tuesday.

Florida state Rep. Ben Albritton, a Republican, introduced the bill with the intention of making things easier on Motor Vehicle employees who regularly deal with identification from foreign lands.

"This one I just missed. I want to tell the people in Canada I am sorry," Albritton told the Tampa Bay Times. "If I messed something up, I am man enough to fix it."

Canada topped all other countries in travel to Florida in 2011 with more than 3 million visitors there. Another English speaking country, the United Kingdom, ranks third on the list with 1.3 million visitors.

Tourism spending in the state totaled $67.2 billion in 2011.

It is unclear when the law will be officially amended.

Legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants to apply for Illinois driver’s licenses passed through the House Transportation Committee Monday morning and heads to the floor.

Under the plan, drivers could obtain three-year licenses, called Temporary Visitor Driver’s Licenses. They would be required to take driver's education and purchase car insurance. Lawmakers believe there are as many as 250,000 undocumented immigrants on Illinois roads and that more than 40 percent of deadly Illinois crashes involve drivers who don't have a license.

"Unlicensed, uninsured drivers pose a serious risk to every driver and passenger on Illinois roadways," Secretary of State Jesse White and State Police Director Hiram Grau in a joint statement. "We can do better – and save lives - by requiring all drivers to have licenses."

Read more at NBC Chicago 

White and Grau said in the statement that approving the plan would also lower insurance rates and strengthen the economy "from the work and buying power of all of our state’s residents."

New Mexico and Washington, which have passed similar laws, have seen traffic accidents involving uninsured drivers plummet, they said. 
 
In November, state politicians -- including Gov. Pat Quinn, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Senate President John Cullerton, House Republican Leader Tom Cross and former Illinois governors Jim Edgar and James Thompson -- joined to support the bill. Twenty-eight Chicago aldermen have also signed a resolution in support of the bill.

Illinois may soon become the most populous U.S. state to grant a form of driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, after the nation's growing Hispanic population boosted the power of Democrats in national and state elections on November 6.

A bipartisan group of Illinois politicians announced on Tuesday they would propose such a law when the legislature convenes on November 27. 

Washington state and New Mexico are the only states that currently allow illegal immigrants to get licenses. Utah allows driving permits. As the fifth most populous state, Illinois would be the biggest state to adopt such a law. 

A California law that allows immigrants with federal work permits to receive driver's licenses will take effect January 1, 2013. 
Supporters said the law would be good for public safety, allowing Illinois immigrant motorists to get tested on their driving skills and buy insurance. 

"When you have a quarter of a million undocumented drivers on the road, it's definitely a safety concern," said Ron Holmes, spokesman for Illinois Senate President John Cullerton, who is backing the measure along with fellow Democrats Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. 

Former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar, a popular Republican, joined Democrats at a news conference in Chicago Tuesday to support the idea, as did Republican State Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka. It also has the support of the powerful House Speaker, Chicago Democrat Michael Madigan, giving it a good chance of passage. 

The drive to pass the law follows the re-election of Democratic President Barack Obama, Democratic gains in the U.S. Senate and in the Illinois legislature with strong Hispanic support. 

Since 2010, a handful of Republican-led states, notably border state Arizona, passed laws cracking down on illegal immigrants. But after this year's election, which saw an estimated 66 percent of Hispanics vote for Obama, Democrats and Republicans have said they want to work on an overhaul of federal immigration law. 

Illinois, like California, elected a veto-proof Democratic supermajority in the legislature this month, with Democrats now controlling all branches of government. 

Unlicensed, uninsured drivers are involved in almost 80,000 accidents in Illinois each year, resulting in $660 million in damage, according to the Illinois Highway Safety Coalition. Unlicensed immigrant drivers cost $64 million in damage claims alone. 

The Safety Coalition said on its website that since New Mexico made the change in 2003, the rate of uninsured motorists fell from 33 percent to under 9 percent. 

New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez, a Republican, has fought to outlaw such licenses since she took office in January 2011. She has argued that the state's law encouraged people to come to New Mexico from other states just to obtain driver's licenses. 
Holmes said supporters of the Illinois measure are talking with law enforcement officials to make sure a license for undocumented immigrants would not be used for fraud. 

The measure would expand to undocumented immigrants Illinois' existing temporary visitor driver's license, used by legal immigrants. The licenses are "visually distinct" from ordinary licenses, with a purple background and the words "not valid for identification" on the front, explained Lawrence Benito, chief executive of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. 

"This is a practical, commonsense approach," said Benito. He said supporters have been talking with Republicans in the legislature to try to get their support. 

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the number of Latinos in Illinois was over 2 million, or nearly 16 percent of the population. 
Republicans in Illinois who have objected to the proposed law in the past could not be reached for comment.

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With its infamous long lines, going to the Department of Motor Vehicles to get your license is usually nothing to smile about. These days, it's a mandatory no-big-smiles policy in New Jersey, one of a growing list of states that tell drivers drivers to keep a poker face in their license photos.

Since February, New Jersey motorists have had to maintain neutral expressions on their faces for photographs because of new face-recognition software. Exaggerated facial expressions, like smiling widely, can confuse this software, which is intended to catch fraud, the Philadelphia Daily News reported.

This practice is nothing new and works with other photo guidelines, like eyes needing to be open and no glasses, New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission spokesperson Elyse Coffey told NBC News on Thursday.

"Please don’t give us the 'I-just-won-five-million-dollars-in-the-lottery-smile," Coffey said. Instead, she said, residents can smile in a natural way.

Using the facial-recognition technology is part of New Jersey's effort to go through 19 million photo records to catch duplicates, scammers who are trying to create a new identity or people trying to cheat another state agency for services, according to Coffey.

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On Tuesday, New Jersey resident Velvet S. McNeil told the Daily News that she was so baffled why she couldn't smile when she went to take her driver's license picture in Cherry Hill, N.J., that she left in protest. "Why should we all look like androids, looking mopey? I know there are some people who don't have good driver's licenses, but I actually keep all mine," McNeil told the Daily News.

But now that McNeil, 38, knows about the policy, she told the Daily News that she will return to renew her license.

Related: Awkward baby passport photo goes viral

"Some, not all, of the facial recognition technologies can be adversely impacted if a person’s expression is anything other than neutral," said Claire O'Brien, spokesperson for the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, in a statement. "In other words, smiling could potentially affect the accuracy of the technology."

New Jersey is not alone in its photo rule: Arkansas, Indiana, Nevada and Virginia are among states that require "neutral facial expressions" to combat fraud, according to a USA TODAY report in 2009.

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