Immigrants in the country illegally could legally drive in NJ under bill

Matt Friedman
The Star-Ledger
3/10/14

Trenton - A new effort is underway in the state Legislature to allow unauthorized immigrants to legally drive in New Jersey, setting up what could be the next state debate over immigration policy.

Under the measure, New Jersey would be required to issue photo ?driving privilege? cards to residents who could not prove that they were in this country legally but were able to show they lived in the state.

?It?s about public safety,? said state Sen. Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex), a sponsor. ?Some of the undocumented are driving anyway. This isn?t to excuse the fact that they?re undocumented. But they?re on the roads. They?re driving. Many uninsured.?

While a spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie declined to comment, the measure is certain to face significant opposition among Republican lawmakers.

A similar but less expansive bill was introduced in the Assembly in 2006 and reintroduced in 2008, but it never advanced and was never introduced in the Senate.

In 2012, several Assembly members introduced a version of the measure that would apply only to those covered under President Obama?s 2012 executive order that lifted the threat of deportation for some unauthorized immigrants who came to the United States as children. That, too, did not advance, although some people covered under the executive order have been able to get driver?s licenses anyway.

The newest version of the driving bill (A2135) was introduced in the Senate in late February by Vitale and Teresa Ruiz (D-Middlesex) and in the Assembly in January by Annette Quijano and Joseph Cryan (both D-Union).

While the prospects for the measure are uncertain, Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-Hudson) is open to the idea.

?This concept is something I?ve been considering, mainly as a public safety measure to ensure more immigrants get proper certification before driving and purchase auto insurance,? said Prieto (D-Hudson), who immigrated to the United States from Cuba at age 11. ?But I want to learn how other states are doing this before deciding whether to post a bill for a vote.?

Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) plans to meet with advocates on the issue, according to his spokesman, Chris Donnelly.

'Go home'
However, the issue is sure to stir debate. Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll (R-Morris) said he?s opposed to the measure.

?Just because some people are out there flouting the law does not mean that we should acknowledge it,? Carroll said. ?From my perspective, I have never quite grasped why it?s so difficult, impossible or inhumane to say to people who are here illegally, go home. If you?re here illegally, go home.?

Under current state law, immigrants must at least have temporary visa status to get a driver?s license.

The legislation being considered goes further than any previous New Jersey bills by including a clause that would charge officials who discriminate against card holders with deprivation of civil rights, punishable by up to three to five years in prison and a fine of as much as $15,000.

Immigrants who provide false documentation to get the cards would face fines of up to $10,000 and up to 18 months in prison.

Under the bill, the cards would be valid for one year and applicants would have to pay an additional fee on top of what citizens have to pay for driver?s licenses for the first five years of the program. The Motor Vehicle Commission would determine the documentation needed.

?It?s crucial?
Giancarlo Tello, an unauthorized immigrant, said he was not able to get a driver?s license until Obama issued his executive order in 2012.

Before that, the bus trip from his home in Belleville to Bergen County Community College required two transfers and took him almost three hours, Tello said.

?I got to school at 6 a.m. and wouldn?t get back until 11 or 12 at night after only two hours of class,? he said.

Tello said providing a legal framework for unauthorized immigrants to drive is a ?brilliant idea.?

?It?s crucial to be able to drive to go to work, get groceries, do laundry,? he said.

Tello helped lead the charge for the most recent victory for advocates in the Legislature for unauthorized immigrants: enactment of a law allowing authorized immigrants who grew up in New Jersey to qualify for in-state tuition at its public college and universities.

Eleven states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have passed laws allowing immigrants to legally drive, according to the National Immigration Law Center. On the other hand, two states have enacted laws banning young people who fall under Obama?s executive order from driving.

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