Posted on 01/20/2006 9:57:30 AM PST by Sharks
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) -- The administration of Gov. Bill Richardson is proposing that illegal immigrants who apply for a New Mexico driver's license be fingerprinted for background checks.
The move would strengthen border security and ensure that applicants for licenses "are who they say they are," Taxation and Revenue Secretary Jan Goodwin said Wednesday.
New Mexico is one of 11 states that don't require driver's license applicants to prove they are legal residents of the United States. The state lets foreign nationals present a passport, a federal tax identification number or a consular identification card to apply for a license.
The head of Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a Santa Fe immigrant advocacy group, said requiring fingerprints would turn immigrants away from getting a license and would undermine public safety goals.
"If people know their fingerprints are going to a federal agency that shares information with the Department of Homeland Security, which enforces immigration laws, the vast majority are not going to apply," Marcela Diaz said. She said her group will fight any proposal "that would discriminate against immigrants."
Goodwin said she hopes fingerprinting would not discourage immigrants from applying.
No!
You're probably right..... *cough*
Can't we sue this moron for ignoring the laws of the US? Yeah, I realize the feds are also ignoring the laws, but we gotta start somewhere....
susie
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