Yes, but the article says this was for a REAL ID, which is a federal program to enhance state IDs. If the guy has a passport, that’s perfectly valid proof of citizenship, and he can just bring that to the DMV. Or, he should have a certificate or report of US birth abroad. If he doesn’t have any of those, he can request a certificate of citizenship.
Or he could just get a regular driver’s license without the REAL ID. Those aren’t going away any time soon and are perfectly valid for driving, no citizenship required.