Amended in Assembly February 25, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1660


Introduced by Assembly Member Alejo

February 12, 2014


An act to amend Section 12801.9 of the Vehicle Code, relating to driver’s licenses.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1660, as amended, Alejo. Driver’s licenses: nondiscrimination.

Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue an original driver’s license to a person who is unable to submit satisfactory proof that the applicant’s presence in the United States is authorized under federal law if he or she meets all other qualifications for licensure and provides satisfactory proof to the department of his or her identity and California residency. Existing law makes it a violation of law, including, but not limited to, a violation of the Unruh Civil Rights Act, to discriminate against an individual because he or she holds or presents a driver’s license issued under these provisions.

This bill would prohibit a governmental authority, or agent of a governmental authority, or person acting on behalf of a governmental authority, from discriminating against an individual because he or she holds or presents a license issued pursuant to those provisions. The bill wouldbegin delete deemend deletebegin insert provide thatend insert an action taken by an employer to comply with any requirement or prohibition under the federal Immigration and Nationality Actbegin delete as not beingend deletebegin insert is notend insert a violation ofbegin delete the Unruh Civil Rights Actend deletebegin insert lawend insert.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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SECTION 1.  

Section 12801.9 of the Vehicle Code is amended
2to read:

3

12801.9.  

(a) Notwithstanding Section 12801.5, the department
4shall issue an original driver’s license to a person who is unable
5to submit satisfactory proof that the applicant’s presence in the
6United States is authorized under federal law if he or she meets
7all other qualifications for licensure and provides satisfactory proof
8to the department of his or her identity and California residency.

9(b) The department shall adopt emergency regulations to carry
10out the purposes of this section, including, but not limited to,
11procedures for (1) identifying documents acceptable for the
12purposes of proving identity and California residency, (2)
13procedures for verifying the authenticity of the documents, (3)
14issuance of a temporary license pending verification of any
15document’s authenticity, and (4) hearings to appeal a denial of a
16license or temporary license.

17(c) Emergency regulations adopted for purposes of establishing
18the documents acceptable to prove identity and residency pursuant
19to subdivision (b) shall be promulgated by the department in
20consultation with appropriate interested parties, in accordance with
21the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
22Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
23Code), including law enforcement representatives, immigrant rights
24representatives, labor representatives, and other stakeholders,
25which may include, but are not limited to, the California Highway
26Patrol, the California State Sheriffs’ Association, and the California
27Police Chiefs Association. The department shall accept various
28types of documentation for this purpose, including, but not limited
29to, the following documents:

30(1) A valid, unexpired consular identification document issued
31by a consulate from the applicant’s country of citizenship, or a
32valid, unexpired passport from the applicant’s country of
33citizenship.

34(2) An original birth certificate, or other proof of age, as
35designated by the department.

36(3) A home utility bill, lease or rental agreement, or other proof
37of California residence, as designated by the department.

P3    1(4) The following documents, which, if in a language other than
2English, shall be accompanied by a certified translation or an
3affidavit of translation into English:

4(A) A marriage license or divorce certificate.

5(B) A foreign federal electoral photo card issued on or after
6January 1, 1991.

7(C) A foreign driver’s license.

8(5) A United States Department of Homeland Security Form
9I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal.

10(6) An official school or college transcript that includes the
11applicant’s date of birth, or a foreign school record that is sealed
12and includes a photograph of the applicant at the age the record
13was issued.

14(7) A United States Department of Homeland Security Form
15I-20 or Form DS-2019.

16(8) A deed or title to real property.

17(9) A property tax bill or statement issued within the previous
1812 months.

19(10) An income tax return.

20(d) (1) A license issued pursuant to this section, including a
21temporary license issued pursuant to Section 12506, shall include
22a recognizable feature on the front of the card, such as the letters
23“DP” instead of, and in the same font size as, the letters “DL,”
24with no other distinguishable feature.

25(2) The license shall bear the following notice: “This card is
26not acceptable for official federal purposes. This license is issued
27only as a license to drive a motor vehicle. It does not establish
28eligibility for employment, voter registration, or public benefits.”

29(3) The notice described in paragraph (2) shall be in lieu of the
30notice provided in Section 12800.5.

31(e) If the United States Department of Homeland Security
32determines a license issued pursuant to this section does not satisfy
33the requirements of Section 37.71 of Title 6 of the Code of Federal
34Regulations, adopted pursuant to paragraph (11) of subdivision
35(d) of Section 202 of the Real ID Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-13),
36the department shall modify the license only to the extent necessary
37to satisfy the requirements of that section.

38(f) Notwithstanding Section 40300 or any other law, a peace
39officer shall not detain or arrest a person solely on the belief that
P4    1the person is an unlicensed driver, unless the officer has reasonable
2cause to believe the person driving is under 16 years of age.

3(g) The inability to obtain a driver’s license pursuant to this
4section does not abrogate or diminish in any respect the legal
5 requirement of every driver in this state to obey the motor vehicle
6laws of this state, including laws with respect to licensing, motor
7vehicle registration, and financial responsibility.

8(h) It shall be a violation of law, including, but not limited to,
9a violation of the Unruh Civil Rights Act (Section 51 of the Civil
10Code), to discriminate against an individual because he or she
11holds or presents a license issued under this section.
12Notwithstanding the foregoing, any action taken by an employer
13to comply with any requirement or prohibition under the federal
14Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. Sec. 1101) is not a
15violation ofbegin delete the Unruh Civil Rights Act (Section 51 of the Civil
16Code)end delete
begin insert lawend insert. This section does not conflict with the employment
17authorization verification requirements of the Immigration and
18Nationality Act.

19(i) A governmental authority, or agent of a governmental
20authority, or person acting on behalf of a governmental authority,
21shall not discriminate against an individual because he or she holds
22or presents a license issued pursuant to this section.

23(j) Information collected pursuant to this section is not a public
24record and shall not be disclosed by the department, except as
25required by law.

26(k) A license issued pursuant to this section shall not be used
27to consider an individual’s citizenship or immigration status as a
28basis for a criminal investigation, arrest, or detention.

29(l) On or before January 1, 2018, the California Research Bureau
30shall compile and submit to the Legislature and the Governor a
31report of any violations of subdivisions (h) and (k). Information
32pertaining to any specific individual shall not be provided in the
33report.

34(m) In addition to the fees required by Section 14900, a person
35applying for an original license pursuant to this section may be
36required to pay an additional fee determined by the department
37that is sufficient to offset the reasonable administrative costs of
38implementing the provisions of the act that added this section. If
39this additional fee is assessed, it shall only apply until June 30,
402017.

P5    1(n) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2015, or
2on the date that the director executes a declaration pursuant to
3Section 12801.11, whichever is sooner.

4(o) This section shall become inoperative on the effective date
5of a final judicial determination made by any court of appellate
6jurisdiction that any provision of the act that added this section,
7or its application, either in whole or in part, is enjoined, found
8unconstitutional, or held invalid for any reason. The department
9shall post this information on its Internet Web site.



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