| Driver's license access reviewed Immigrants may face easier road 04/09/2001 By Frank Trejo / The Dallas Morning News An effort has begun in the Texas Legislature to make it easier for undocumented immigrants such as Vicente Fernandez of Dallas to obtain driver's licenses.
Mr. Fernandez does not have a Social Security number – a Texas Department of Public Safety requirement for all driver's license applications.
"I'm always having to be begging for rides and always trying to figure out the bus system," said the 25-year-old immigrant from El Salvador. "I've learned that to live here in the United States, you need to have a driver's license to do so many things. But many of us can't get that license."
A hearing on three bills introduced by state Rep. Miguel Wise, D-Weslaco, to change the law is scheduled for Monday before the House Public Safety Committee.
Supporters of the measure say such a change simply recognizes the reality that there are tens of thousands of immigrants living without Social Security numbers in Texas. As a result, many are driving without licenses, and also without liability insurance. But opponents say eliminating the Social Security number requirement diminishes the value and credibility of the driver's license.
Jesse Bernal, chief of staff for Mr. Wise, said the state representative has submitted three bills so legislators can have greater flexibility in crafting a law. Two of the bills offer different forms of identification that could be used in place of Social Security numbers, and the third bill is a combination.
A fourth bill has been introduced in the state Senate by Sen. Mario Gallegos Jr., D-Houston. That bill has been referred to the Criminal Justice Committee.
Adriana Cadena, a policy analyst for the Austin-based Texas Immigrant and Refugee Coalition, said her organization approached Mr. Wise.
"We heard a lot from the immigrant communities we represent that there were these obstacles that kept them from even applying for licenses and that they were out there driving [without licenses] because they still had to get to work and had to take kids to school," Ms. Cadena said.
"The issue is that these people are here and they are working because obviously someone is hiring them and they are driving to work," she said. "Do you want to have safe drivers who are knowledgeable about the rules of the road and getting the proper insurance on their vehicles, or do you want to have unsafe and unlicensed drivers on the road?"
Jack Martin, special projects director at the Federation for American Immigration Reform, dismisses the notion that the measure would improve public safety.
His organization, which is based in Washington, D.C., favors greater restrictions on immigration.
"If a person has a driver's license based on phony identification, and then that person gets into a traffic accident or gets caught for speeding, that person is not identifiable," Mr. Martin said. "This is basically a way to facilitate giving driver's licenses to illegal aliens, and that is a mistake because it facilitates working illegally in the United States."
And, he added, a license doesn't make a person automatically more respectful of traffic laws.
But the proposed legislation has generated support among immigrant communities. Last week, a Dallas group called the Coalition for Dignity and Amnesty held a news conference in front of a DPS driver's license office in Oak Cliff.
Among the speakers were Mr. Fernandez and two of his brothers, who spoke about the obstacles they face without driver's licenses. Several community representatives, including Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Steve Salazar, expressed support.
Mr. Salazar urged changing the law to allow DPS to accept alternative forms of identification, including foreign birth certificates and passports.
Tela Mange, a spokeswoman for the DPS, said her agency takes no position on pending legislation.
She noted that the DPS has required license applicants to provide a Social Security number since 1997. The agency has asked for the numbers since 1992, but applicants were not required to provide them.
She said the DPS must comply with laws that require it to get that information from applicants, primarily to provide the information to the Child Support Division of the Attorney General's Office.
Paul Kerr, director of the Center for Human Rights in Dallas, said one of his concerns is that the DPS accepts Canadian documents as proof of identity but no others.
"They will accept foreign passports with U.S. visas stamped on them, but not the passports by themselves," Mr. Kerr said.
He and others called for DPS to be allowed to accept passports and consulate-issued identification cards.
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