Legislature(2007 - 2008)BELTZ 211
01/31/2008 09:00 AM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB37 | |
| SB201 | |
| SB215 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | HB 37 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 201 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 215 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
SB 215-REQUIREMENTS FOR DRIVER'S LICENSE/I.D.
10:13:00 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the consideration of SB 215.
SENATOR CHARLIE HUGGINS, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor of SB
215, said the bill requires an applicant for a driver's license
or a state identification card to be a citizen of this country
or legally present. Alaskans are sensitive to the issue "of
people coming here and exploiting our system when they're not
here legally." Regarding a student with a visa, his or her
driver's license will be good for the length of the visa. It
allows the state to know who is here. In 2006, SB 189 passed the
Senate by a margin of 17 to 1. Representative Bob Lynn has "the
real bill." This is a companion bill to his. "I'm supporting his
cause for Alaskans, and we need to merge those at some time …
but that does not subordinate how important I think this is to
Alaskans." SB 215 is one way to keep at bay "people who are
illegal in our state exploiting our system."
10:16:34 AM
SENATOR BUNDE said he just received information about the number
of illegal aliens who were involved in crime and deported or
moved to another state. It is 200 to 300 people per year.
SENATOR HUGGINS said Americans are very naïve. There is
networking going on and people are being transported, he said.
"The worst, obviously, is down at the southern border in some
cases, but it doesn't matter whether it's people that have the
capacity to create havoc in our country based on terrorism, or
the fact that they're transporting drugs, or it's just that
they're being paid to move people. That same networking is
happening within states." "When things are getting a little bit
warmed as far as preventive measures in state X, they may move
to state Y, which is Alaska."
10:18:47 AM
DUANE BANNOCK, former Director, Alaska Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV), said he is testifying "just for fun … it was an
important bill to me when it was about my job; it's an important
bill to me today when it doesn't have anything to do about my
job." Senator Huggins has done a good job of describing the
bill. "There are a lot of knocks about this bill." California,
with its great understanding of illegal immigration, has rules
similar to SB 215. He opined that Governor Gray Davis of
California was recalled because he wanted illegal aliens to get
state-issued driver's licenses and identification cards. This
bill is about preventing people who are illegally here from
having an Alaskan driver's license or identification card. A
bill passed the Senate, but SB 215 is different with regard to
Sections 1 and 2, which will save time and money. A 60-year-old
can get a free five-year identification card. SB 215 provides
for eight years instead of five. It costs the state to produce
that card. By giving less away, it saves money.
10:22:09 AM
MR. BANNOCK said it is not about big brother. "If you believe
that illegal aliens should not be allowed to have a valid Alaska
driver's license or identification care, I urge your yes vote."
SCOTT MCMURREN, Travel Consultant, Anchorage, said he is not
illegal, but he is a traveler. SB 215 allows the legislature to
pass off their oversight with regard to the Division of Motor
Vehicles. It is a back door to complying with "real i.d." Real
I.D. is a bad thing. We do not need big national databases on
travelers who have done nothing wrong. "These are the same folks
who brought us the terrorist watch list - 700,000 people - my
goodness, how many terrorists do we really need?"
10:24:43 AM
BILL SCANNEL, Anchorage, said he has personally fought national
identification systems around the country for five years. This
bill doesn't affect illegal aliens at all. They can't get a
driver's license in Alaska today, but SB 215 forces everyone
else to prove they are Americans - "to prove who we are by
pulling out our birth certificates and passports and high school
yearbooks and whatever." That is reprehensible. He asked why
Americans should suffer such indignity just because the
government can't control the borders. He said he spent four
years, two months, and 18 days as an intelligence officer in
West Berlin, and he saw what it meant to be forced to carry
papers under communist countries. The bill is the cornerstone of
the Real I.D. Act. It will give the DMV tremendous powers to
implement a national identification card.
10:27:13 AM
MATTHEW KERR, Anchorage, said he has personally opposed this
bill for the past several years. It is more than a legal
presence bill, which he would not be entirely opposed to, but
there are more issues than that. He is philosophically against
the bill as it is a path to the Real ID Act. It doesn't
accomplish its goal, because illegal aliens can drive with their
home country licenses. It will increase bureaucracy, and it
charges the DMV with federal immigration enforcement. It changes
the meaning of a driver's license. He said he doesn't support
illegal immigration, but he doesn't support the bill that made
it an additional crime for an illegal immigrant to be eating in
a restaurant, riding on a bus, or something like that. He
prefers that people on the road have drivers licenses. The
license is for public safety, not for an individual benefit.
10:29:42 AM
MR. KERR said illegal immigrants may be able to drive legally in
certain cases while still committing the crime of being here
illegally. [Foreign] students are not necessarily granted a stay
for the full time needed for their degree programs. They receive
an I-20 form which is what actually dictates the length of their
legal presence in this country. During a degree program,
students will likely receive multiple I-20s. He gave an example
where someone's I-20 could be in the mail when the driver's
license expires, and the student could be arrested for not
having a valid driver's license even though he or she is legally
in the country. That person would then become deportable for
having the crime of driving without a license. A fair compromise
may be to require driver's license applicants to show legal
presence at that time without setting an expiration date, other
than the standard one.
10:32:07 AM
MR. KERR said a friend lived in Germany where public
transportation allowed him not to drive. He came to Alaska to
visit, and he was legally present. But the DMV couldn't
understand how he was legally in the country. He had to find
another DMV to issue a license, even though he was legally
present under existing regulations. A friend of Mr. Kerr's is a
Russian foreign student, and her passport expired and was
renewed while she was in this country, so her current passport
does not have her visa. He can foresee problems for her if she
needs to renew her driver's license under the bill's rules. As a
computer programmer, Mr. Kerr finds it extremely troubling if
the DMV were to scan and keep all the documents that were used
to get the driver's license. If this bill passes, the DMV should
be required to destroy copies of those documents. People with
bad intentions may access that information.
CHAIR MCGUIRE turned the gavel over to Vice-Chair Stevens.
10:35:01 AM
JIM HARRISON, Attorney, said he has considerable expertise in
identification-based domestic security. He said he is at the
hearing at his own expense. Without this bill, Alaska can't
comply with the "real i.d." SB 215 contains what is called "a
legal presence requirement." The Real I.D. Act's final standards
have been issued and require that states require driver's
license applicants to prove citizenship. It is meant for
everyone for every renewal, and it will need to be done in
person. The DMV will decide what documents will be required.
That allows the DMV to adopt its own standards. "As it is now,
you will have to bring in your birth certificate, proof of legal
presence, proof of residence, where you stay and what not." Mr.
Bannock previously testified that last year's bill was changed
so that renewing a driver's license would not be part of it, and
that would mean that Alaska would not be real i.d. compliant.
10:38:07 AM
MR. HARRISON said this is expensive. States automatically renew
licenses by mail, and the bill will prohibit that. "You have to
appear in person. You have to swear under penalty of perjury
that you say who you are." Copies of the personal documents will
be made. There is no fiscal note on the bill, and it will be
expensive. People will need to be trained and facilities will
get overrun. He said the federal government wants real i.d.s for
getting on airplanes, entering federal buildings, and for
entering nuclear facilities. He asked if Alaska should buy into
the idea of real i.d. There is danger of mission creep. There is
talk about using real i.d. to verify the eligibility of
employees and filling prescriptions. Physical security is much
more effective than identification security. Searching people
for weapons is more effective than secret lists of people. It is
un-American to make people prove that they are not wanted on a
list before they can freely move around the country.
10:41:11 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS said both sides are heartfelt. He shares some of
the concerns. He is offended by a census category of what he
looks like and what his DNA and complexion are. "I don't fill
out that portion." He doesn't provide his Social Security
Number, either, if it is optional. He is offended by that. He
spent time in the army and "salute those who have done that."
But with or without this bill, a person has to "go in" to renew
a driver's license. If a person has a driver's license or an
identification card and is seeking a renewal, duplicate, or
change of name, the person is presumed to meet the requirement
of this bill if the license has not been expired for more than
90 days or suspended or revoked. "If this passes, we do not all
have to run down to the DMV to get a new license." He said he
doesn't support the concept of a national identification card
right now. He uses his military identification card when he
flies. Other things besides a driver's license can be used to
get on an airplane, so the bill "doesn't create that sort of
obstacle in my estimation." He will entertain modifications to
protect Alaskans.
VICE-CHAIR STEVENS said he will hold SB 215.
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