Her454
06-28-2005, 11:03 AM
:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:
Illegal Immigrant Driver's License Bill OK'd By Assembly Committee
POSTED: 7:37 am PDT June 28, 2005
UPDATED: 7:57 am PDT June 28, 2005
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- An Assembly committee approved legislation Monday that would allow illegal immigrants to get California driver's licenses, despite opposition from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger administration officials who said the bill was premature.
Representatives of the Department of Motor Vehicles and the state Office of Homeland Security said Monday that lawmakers should wait until the federal government issues regulations spelling out the details of requirements for the licenses.
Mike Dayton, deputy director of the Office of Homeland Security, went further, suggesting that terrorists could use the licenses to "carry out their evil deeds." But the measure's author, Sen. Gil Cedillo, D-Los Angeles, said it would implement security requirements sought by Schwarzenegger and required by federal legislation signed by President George W. Bush.
The licenses would have to be of a different color or design than driver's licenses held by other motorists and they could be used only for driving, not as widely recognized identification documents, Cedillo said.
Cedillo has been trying for seven years to enact legislation allowing the licenses, saying they would improve highway safety by getting more drivers tested and insured.
Former Gov. Gray Davis signed one of his license bills in 2003, but lawmakers repealed that law after Davis was recalled by voters.
Cedillo said he thought he had an agreement with Schwarzenegger to sign a revised license measure last year, but the Republican governor vetoed it, contending it lacked security requirements.
SURVEY
Do you think undocumented immigrants should be able to obtain a California drivers' license?
Yes
No
I have no opinion on this issue
Results | Disclaimer
This year Cedillo said he'd met Schwarzenegger's concerns by dropping his opposition to licenses that looked different from the standard ones, but the governor's office has raised new objections about the timing of the bill.
"I hoped that we could do this in a bipartisan manner, the manner in which Congress did," Cedillo said. "I wish we could support the president in a bipartisan manner. It's our duty today to ensure highway safety."
But Republican lawmakers argued that bill would undercut efforts to prevent illegal immigration.
"The biggest problem I have with this bill is it's making a mockery of the law of the land," said Assemblyman Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar. "It sends mixed messages."
Democrats said allowing the licenses would have no impact on illegal immigration, that many California businesses depend on illegal immigrants for employees, that employers are seldom penalized for hiring them and that other drivers suffer when all motorists aren't licensed and insured.
"When you want to have a serious discussion about strengthening employer sanctions and raising the minimum wage so so-called American workers will clean bathrooms and mow lawns, then I'm willing to have that debate," said Assemblyman Alberto Torrico, D-Fremont.
Michael Gunning, a lobbyist for an insurance industry group, the Personal Insurance Federation of California, also testified for the bill, saying it would lead to "trained, tested and insured drivers, which will increase highway safety for all."
Drivers can't get auto insurance unless they're licensed, Gunning said.
A 7-5 vote sent the bill to the Appropriations Committee, the last stop before the full Assembly.
Illegal Immigrant Driver's License Bill OK'd By Assembly Committee
POSTED: 7:37 am PDT June 28, 2005
UPDATED: 7:57 am PDT June 28, 2005
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- An Assembly committee approved legislation Monday that would allow illegal immigrants to get California driver's licenses, despite opposition from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger administration officials who said the bill was premature.
Representatives of the Department of Motor Vehicles and the state Office of Homeland Security said Monday that lawmakers should wait until the federal government issues regulations spelling out the details of requirements for the licenses.
Mike Dayton, deputy director of the Office of Homeland Security, went further, suggesting that terrorists could use the licenses to "carry out their evil deeds." But the measure's author, Sen. Gil Cedillo, D-Los Angeles, said it would implement security requirements sought by Schwarzenegger and required by federal legislation signed by President George W. Bush.
The licenses would have to be of a different color or design than driver's licenses held by other motorists and they could be used only for driving, not as widely recognized identification documents, Cedillo said.
Cedillo has been trying for seven years to enact legislation allowing the licenses, saying they would improve highway safety by getting more drivers tested and insured.
Former Gov. Gray Davis signed one of his license bills in 2003, but lawmakers repealed that law after Davis was recalled by voters.
Cedillo said he thought he had an agreement with Schwarzenegger to sign a revised license measure last year, but the Republican governor vetoed it, contending it lacked security requirements.
SURVEY
Do you think undocumented immigrants should be able to obtain a California drivers' license?
Yes
No
I have no opinion on this issue
Results | Disclaimer
This year Cedillo said he'd met Schwarzenegger's concerns by dropping his opposition to licenses that looked different from the standard ones, but the governor's office has raised new objections about the timing of the bill.
"I hoped that we could do this in a bipartisan manner, the manner in which Congress did," Cedillo said. "I wish we could support the president in a bipartisan manner. It's our duty today to ensure highway safety."
But Republican lawmakers argued that bill would undercut efforts to prevent illegal immigration.
"The biggest problem I have with this bill is it's making a mockery of the law of the land," said Assemblyman Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar. "It sends mixed messages."
Democrats said allowing the licenses would have no impact on illegal immigration, that many California businesses depend on illegal immigrants for employees, that employers are seldom penalized for hiring them and that other drivers suffer when all motorists aren't licensed and insured.
"When you want to have a serious discussion about strengthening employer sanctions and raising the minimum wage so so-called American workers will clean bathrooms and mow lawns, then I'm willing to have that debate," said Assemblyman Alberto Torrico, D-Fremont.
Michael Gunning, a lobbyist for an insurance industry group, the Personal Insurance Federation of California, also testified for the bill, saying it would lead to "trained, tested and insured drivers, which will increase highway safety for all."
Drivers can't get auto insurance unless they're licensed, Gunning said.
A 7-5 vote sent the bill to the Appropriations Committee, the last stop before the full Assembly.