Posted on 03/11/2005 6:56:04 AM PST by frankenMonkey
Utah issuing driving cards
Number of applicants declines after SB227 goes into effect
By Joseph M. Dougherty
Deseret Morning News
A week ago, people without Social Security numbers rushed to the state Driver License Division in West Valley City to get their drivers' licenses.
Alex Harris, 15, has his photo taken for his learner's permit at the Driver License Division, West Valley City.
Tom Smart, Deseret Morning News They used an ITIN, or temporary tax number, as their identification number, and the division processed about 80 applications a day, said Doug Hunt, the supervisor of the largest Driver License Division in Utah.
Hunt told the Deseret Morning News that his office in West Valley City normally processes 50 to 60 applications a day for people who submit an ITIN. In the few weeks before SB227 was passed, that number jumped to 80.
Then SB227, which provides a driving privilege card to undocumented immigrants who can prove Utah residency and have an ITIN, was signed into law Tuesday.
Wednesday, his office processed eight driving privilege cards. Thursday: nine.
Doug McCleve, spokesman for the Utah Department of Public Safety, said he hopes the sharp decline isn't from fear of racial profiling.
State troopers won't automatically haul drivers using the driving privilege to jail, he said.
"First of all, it's against the Constitution to profile someone based on race," he said. "That's not what we're about."
McCleve said if someone feels victimized by a trooper, he can contact the department at 801-965-4437. He promised the department would investigate each case and take immediate action.
McCleve said it's not a trooper's job to focus on immigration, which is a federal issue. A trooper's job is safety on the state's highways.
"This is a driving privilege," he said.
People who apply for a driving privilege card will receive a temporary permit stamped in red ink with the words: "For driving only. Not for identification."
The permit is nearly identical to any normal temporary license for new drivers.
The driving privilege card, which haven't been designed yet, will eventually look quite different from a driver's license, McCleve said. But it will be hard plastic. The card costs the same as a driver's license and expires every year on the applicant's birthday.
Thursday afternoon, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. also signed into law another bill dealing with driving, but this one affects people who are legally residing in the United States.
HB223, which will allow those people to have a driver's license or identification card as long as they can prove Utah residency, takes effect July 1.
Anyone with a foreign visa, permit or other document granting legal presence in the United States may have a valid driver's license or identification card as long as all of those documents are valid.
These people were previously unable to get a Utah driver's license because a Social Security number or ITIN is required. Rep. Curt Oda, D-Clearfield, has called it a Hill-Air-Force-Base-friendly bill, because allied troops training at Hill would benefit. So would those with student visas and foreign athletes training for the Olympics.
For longtime legal visitors the drivers' licenses and identification cards can only be extended for five years instead of 10, and the Driver License Division cannot grant an extension to an applicant who has neither Social Security number nor ITIN.
HB223 is sometimes referred to as the sister bill to the much-publicized SB227.
The president of Save America, Barry Hatch, said the state shouldn't cater to people who come to the United States illegally, and allowing driving privilege cards is a step too far.
"What more do they want?" he asked. "To vote?"
He said they should be taught the rule of law by being deported, especially if they have criminal records or are on welfare. Any illegal immigrants who are hard-working should go back home and apply to come to the United States through proper channels, he said.
A temporary driving privilege card, with personal ID marked out.
It's news to me, too!
"McCleve said it's not a trooper's job to focus on immigration, which is a federal issue. A trooper's job is safety on the state's highways."
And if the stopee were a bank robber in Colorado, then you'd let him go? Their job is LAW enforcement I thought.
Imagine you're a U.S. citizen entering Mexico illegally. Once there, you demand free medical care and English-speaking nurses and doctors. You also want free education for your child – in English. You also say you expect classes on American culture in the Mexican school system. You demand the right to vote in Mexican elections and you insist on bilingual ballots. Since, as an English speaker, you find it difficult to find regular work, you sign up for welfare. Next, of course, you demand a Mexican driver's license.
What do you think would become of you as a U.S. citizen if you tried this in Mexico?
That's right. You would wind up in jail, deported or dead.
Have you had enough yet?
Joseph Farah
My first thought also. Don't you love how people decide what's constitutional. Why are illegal aliens given special treatment?
"McCleve said it's not a trooper's job to focus on immigration, which is a federal issue. A trooper's job is safety on the state's highways."
Hmmm, No license, no insurance and not familiar with driver laws; Isn't that a safety issue?
Given that illegal immigrants aren't being deported in significant numbers, the states have to do what they can to protect themselves. Americans really are of two different minds on the subject of illegal aliens.
Before any of the above three happened, you'd be robbed blind.................by the cops!!!
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