BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 60| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- THIRD READING Bill No: AB 60 Author: Alejo (D), et al. Amended: 9/3/13 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 8-2, 7/2/13 AYES: DeSaulnier, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso, Lara, Liu, Roth NOES: Gaines, Wyland NO VOTE RECORDED: Pavley SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 5-2, 8/30/13 AYES: De León, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg NOES: Walters, Gaines ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 55-20, 5/29/13 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : Driver's licenses: eligibility: required documentation SOURCE : Author DIGEST : This bill requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to issue a driver's license to individuals who are ineligible for a social security number if the individual can provide specified documents. ANALYSIS : Existing law generally requires all drivers to hold a California driver's license in order to drive in this state, with limited exceptions such as operation of farm machinery and CONTINUED AB 60 Page 2 off-road highway vehicles. Existing law allows an individual who holds a valid driver's license from another state or country to drive in California as long as that license remains valid. If an individual becomes a California resident, he/she must obtain a California driver's license within 10 days. Existing law establishes a provisional driver's license program for individuals between 16 and 18 years of age with specified requirements. An individual 18 years or older may apply for an original driver's license by completing an application, giving a thumbprint, having a picture taken, providing a social security number, providing verification of birth date and legal presence, paying an application fee, passing an eye exam, and passing a traffic laws and sign test. DMV may issue a permit once the individual completes these requirements. A permit holder must be accompanied by another individual 18 years or older when practicing driving. A permit holder may schedule a driving test at DMV at any time after obtaining a permit. Upon passing the driving test, a permit holder receives his/her driver's license. This bill: 1.Sunsets current provisions of law, as of January 1, 2015, that: A. Prohibit DMV from issuing a driver's license to an applicant who cannot provide proof of legal presence in the U.S. B. Allow DMV to issue a driver's license to an applicant from another country who can establish legal presence as approved by the federal government. C. Require DMV to issue a temporary driver's license to a legal nonimmigrant if he/she has successfully completed the application and related requirements but the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service has not yet verified the applicant's legal presence status. D. Make it a misdemeanor for an individual to assist knowingly in obtaining a driver's license or identification card for an individual who is unable to establish legal CONTINUED AB 60 Page 3 presence. 1.Allows an individual who is applying to DMV after January 1, 2015, for an original driver's license or license renewal to provide, in lieu of a social security number, a number associated with a document that DMV finds clearly establishes the identity of the applicant. Requires all applications for a driver's license, to include, in addition to space for a social security number, a space for a number associated with any document that established the identity of the applicant, as determined by DMV. 2.Allows such an applicant to provide, in lieu of proof of legal presence in the U.S. and a social security number, all of the following: A. A valid consular identification document issued by a consulate from the applicant's country of citizenship, or a valid passport from the applicant's country of citizenship; B. An original birth certificate or other proof of age as designated by DMV; C. A residential utility bill, lease or rental agreement, or other proof of California residence as designated by DMV; and D. Any one of the following documents, which, if in a language other than English, shall be accompanied by a certified translation or an affidavit of translation into English: (1) A marriage license or divorce certificate; (2) A foreign federal electoral photo card issued on or after January 1, 1991; (3) A foreign driver's license; (4) A federally issued application for asylum and withholding of removal; (5) An official school or college transcript that includes the applicant's date of birth or a sealed foreign school record that includes a photograph of the CONTINUED AB 60 Page 4 applicant at the age the record was issued; (6) A federally issued certificate of eligibility for foreign exchange students; (7) A property deed or title; (8) A property tax bill or statement issued within the previous 12 months; (9) An income tax return; or (10) Other proof of identity as designated by DMV. 1.Specifies the information collected pursuant to the above is not a public record and DMV shall not disclose it for any purpose. 2.Specifies that this bill does not apply to the issuance or renewal of a commercial driver's license or an original identification card. 6.Provides that DMV shall require an applicant for an original identification card to submit satisfactory proof that the applicant's presence in the United States is authorized under federal law before issuing a card. 7.Provides that DMV shall adopt regulations for the procedures to verify the applicant's legal presence, and for appeal hearings for the denial of an identification card. 8.Requires DMV to submit a supplemental budget report to the Governor and the Legislature each year detailing the costs of verifying the citizenship or legal residency of applicants for identification cards, in order for the state to request reimbursement from the federal government. 9.Makes it a misdemeanor for any person to knowingly assist in obtaining an identification card for any person whose presence in the United States is not authorized under federal law. Background REAL ID Act . The federal REAL ID Act of 2005 enacts the 9/11 CONTINUED AB 60 Page 5 Commission's recommendation to establish federal standards for issuing driver's licenses and other sources of identification. It establishes minimum standards including enhanced security features on the driver's license or identification card and a requirement for applicants to provide their social security number, birth certificate, and proof of legal presence in the U.S. The REAL ID Act prohibits federal agencies from accepting documents for official purposes (e.g., boarding an airplane or entering a federal building) unless the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has determined that the state meets the minimum standards. To date, DHS has determined that 13 states - not including California - meet REAL ID standards. DHS has granted the remaining states a deferment. This bill does not comply with the REAL ID Act. Federal developments . In June 2012, DHS issued a directive allowing certain individuals who came to the US as children and who meet several key criteria to request consideration of deferred action (e.g., deferral of deportation) for two years, subject to renewal; these individuals then become eligible for work authorization. Upon receiving a federal work authorization card, an individual may apply for a social security number, as long as he/she can provide additional documentation proving age and identity. AB 2189 (Cedillo, Chapter 862, Statutes of 2012), brought California into conformity with the federal deferred action program. Thus, deferred action grantees in California now have a pathway to apply for a driver's license once they have established legal presence. Congress is currently debating whether and how to reform the U.S. immigration system. It is unclear how the outcome of this debate might affect REAL ID implementation, the deferred action program, and federal driver's license regulations. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No According to the Senate Appropriations Committee: Estimated DMV costs of approximately $140 million to $220 million over three years to issue approximately 1.4 million new driver's licenses (Motor Vehicle Account). Most of these costs are for new temporary facilities, additional staff, and increased processing time in field offices throughout the state. CONTINUED AB 60 Page 6 Estimated driver's license application fee revenues of approximately $50 million over three years (Motor Vehicle Account). SUPPORT : (Verified 9/3/13) AFSCME California Catholic Conference California Farm Labor Contractor Association California Farm Labor Contractors Association California Grape and Tree Fruit League California Immigrant Policy Center California Labor Federation California Labor Foundation California Latino Caucus California Primary Care Association California State Grange Cities of Berkeley, Lathrop, Los Angeles and Pomona Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles Council of Mexican Federations Department of Insurance Farmers Insurance Friends Committee on Legislation of California Inland Empire Immigrant Youth Coalition Justice for Immigrants Coalition of Southern California- San Bernardino Latina(o) Roundtable of Pomona and San Gabriel Valley Latino Coalition for a Healthy California Latino Democratic Club, Sacramento Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund Monterey County Supervisors National Council of La Raza Personal Insurance Federation of California PICO California Pomona Economic Opportunity Center Pomona Habla Community Coalition Pueblo de Fe United for Workers Justice-Inland Valleys Warehouse Workers United- Ontario OPPOSITION : (Verified 9/3/13) unlicensedtokill.org ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author points to a DMV study CONTINUED AB 60 Page 7 published in September 2012 that found that compared to licensed drivers, suspended or revoked and unlicensed drivers are nearly three times more likely to cause a fatal crash. The study notes that "it is likely that the percentage of drivers in the unlicensed group who are ineligible for a license increased following enactment of California Senate Bill 976 on January 1, 1994." SB 976 (Alquist, Chapter 820, Statutes of 1994) requires driver's license applicants to provide proof of legal presence in the U.S. in order to obtain a license. The author notes that approximately one in five fatal crashes in the U.S. involves an unlicensed or invalidly licensed driver. The author states that this bill will improve traffic safety as it will ensure that drivers on roads are properly trained, pass the driving test, pass a background check, know our state driving laws, and become insured. ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : Unlicensedtokill.org notes that the only recommendation DMV makes in the study cited by the author is to impound the cars of unlicensed drivers to get them off the road, not to issue licenses to them. The organization states that after New Mexico began issuing driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants in 2003, traffic fatalities increased significantly, despite falling in other states during the same period. The organization argues that licensing undocumented immigrants will not make them safer drivers and will not guarantee that they obtain insurance. ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 55-20, 5/29/13 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Ammiano, Atkins, Bloom, Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chesbro, Cooley, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray, Hall, Roger Hernández, Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Lowenthal, Medina, Mitchell, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Weber, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez NOES: Allen, Bigelow, Conway, Dahle, Donnelly, Beth Gaines, Grove, Hagman, Harkey, Jones, Linder, Logue, Maienschein, Mansoor, Melendez, Morrell, Patterson, Wagner, Waldron, Wilk NO VOTE RECORDED: Chávez, Holden, Nestande, Olsen, Vacancy JA:ej 9/3/13 Senate Floor Analyses CONTINUED AB 60 Page 8 SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED