BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 249|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 249
Author: Hueso (D)
Amended: 4/30/15
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANS. & HOUSING COMMITTEE: 11-0, 4/7/15
AYES: Beall, Cannella, Allen, Bates, Gaines, Galgiani, Leyva,
McGuire, Mendoza, Roth, Wieckowski
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: 5-2, 4/21/15
AYES: Jackson, Hertzberg, Leno, Monning, Wieckowski
NOES: Moorlach, Anderson
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/28/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
SUBJECT: Vehicles: enhanced drivers licenseVehicles: enhanced
drivers license.
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles
(DMV) to issue enhanced driver's licenses (EDLs), which
individuals can use at border crossings as proof of both
identity and citizenship.
ANALYSIS:
Existing federal law:
1) Establishes the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist
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Prevention Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-458). This act was
intended to address the need for increased security measures
after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. To implement this
legislation, with an eye to reducing border congestion, the
Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) established a plan called the Western Hemisphere
Travel Initiative (WHTI). The WHTI requires U.S. and
Canadian travelers to present a passport or other document
proving identity and citizenship to enter the country
beginning in 2007 for air travel into the U.S., and in 2009
for land and sea travel into the U.S.
2) Establishes the EDL as one of the documents meeting WHTI
requirements. An EDL is a driver's license that an
individual can also use as a travel document to enter the
U.S. from Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, and Bermuda. A key
feature distinguishing an EDL from a California driver's
license is RFID technology. RFID systems allow information
contained in a wireless device, or "tag," to be read from a
distance. RFID technology can be found in car keys,
security access cards, and highway toll lanes (such as
FasTrak).
3) Establishes, under the WHTI, "ready lanes" at some U.S.
Customs and Border Protection (border patrol) ports of
entry, including Calexico East, Otay Mesa, and San Ysidro on
the California-Mexico border. Ready lanes are dedicated to
travelers with RFID-enabled travel documents, such as EDLs.
Frequent travelers who hold EDLs can use these lanes to
expedite the inspection process. Specifically, as a
traveler approaches inspection lanes at the border,
authorized readers read the EDL from 10 to 15 feet away.
4) Provides that no personal information is stored on the
EDL, only a number that points to information housed in the
secure database. Upon reading this number, the reader
signals the database to display biographical information, a
photo, and the results of terrorist/criminal checks to the
border patrol officer as the vehicle pulls up to the
inspection booth. While the officer must still conduct a
visual inspection, and potentially interview the driver, he
or she does not have to take the time to collect paper
documents and key them in. Four states (Michigan, New York,
Vermont, and Washington), as well as several Canadian
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provinces, are currently issuing EDLs.
Existing state law:
1) Authorizes DMV to issue driver's licenses and
identification cards. In order to obtain a driver's license
or identification card, an individual must provide, among
other things, a social security number, verification of
birth date and legal presence in the U.S., and a thumb
print. DMV encodes the individual's basic personal
information in a magnetic strip on the back of the license
or identification card.
2) Prohibits the DMV, unless requested by the licensee, from
distributing or selling the licensee's photograph or any
information pertaining to the licensee's physical
characteristics to any private individual, other than the
licensee, or to any firm, co-partnership, association, or
corporation. That prohibition does not apply to any private
business entity that contracts with DMV for the production
of driver's licenses and identification cards, if the
contract prohibits unauthorized use and disclosure of the
information.
3) Provides that a person or entity that intentionally
remotely reads or attempts to remotely read a person's
identification document, including a driver's license or
identification card, using radio frequency identification
technology (RFID), without that person's knowledge and prior
consent, shall be punished by imprisonment. Further, a
person or entity that knowingly discloses, or causes to be
disclosed, the operational system keys used in a contactless
identification document system shall be punished by
imprisonment in a county jail for up to one year, a fine of
not more than $1,500, or both.
This bill:
1) Authorizes DMV to enter into a memorandum of understanding
with a federal agency to obtain approval to issue an EDL,
instruction permit, provisional license, or identification
card (hereafter referred to generally as an EDL) that meets
WHTI requirements. Authorizes the DMV to issue or renew an
EDL to an applicant who is 16 years or older and is both a
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California resident and a U.S. citizen.
2) Requires an applicant to submit proof of identity,
California residency, and U.S. citizenship and to certify
under penalty of perjury that the information is valid.
Also requires the applicant to sign a declaration
acknowledging his or her understanding of RFID technology.
3) Requires DMV to inform the applicant in writing that the
randomly assigned RFID number can be read remotely without
the holder's knowledge, if the EDL is not enclosed in a
protective shield or similar tamper-resistant device.
4) Requires DMV to include in the EDL reasonable security
measures to protect against unauthorized duplication or
disclosure of the holder's personal information. Limits the
RFID technology in the EDL to contain only a randomly
assigned number, encrypted subject to DHS approval, and a
bar code that can only be read by border patrol.
5) Prohibits an employer from requiring an employee to apply
for or use an EDL as a condition of employment or to
discharge, discriminate against, or retaliate against an
employee who refuses to apply for or use an EDL.
6) Authorizes an employee who is discharged, threatened with
discharge, demoted, suspended, or in any other manner
discriminated or retaliated against in relation to an EDL to
file a complaint with the Department of Industrial
Relations' Division of Labor Standards within one year.
7) Requires an applicant to allow DMV to capture and
reproduce his or her photograph and signature at the time of
application or renewal and provides that these items shall
only be available to border patrol or DHS.
8) Requires DMV to verify the validity of an EDL application
or renewal and accompanying proof. Authorizes DMV to
require the applicant to submit additional information to
establish identity, residency, and citizenship. Authorizes
DMV to deny an application if it finds the application or
supporting documentation is inadequate or invalid.
9) Establishes a non-refundable fee of $55 for application or
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renewal, in addition to other fees required by state law, to
be deposited in a special account within the Motor Vehicle
Account.
10) Specifies that this bill is not intended to conflict with
any other state or federal law.
11) Requires DMV to submit an annual report to the Legislature
including, but not limited to, information on the number of
EDLs and related documents issued, the effect on wait times
and traffic congestion at ports of entry, and whether or not
there have been security or privacy breaches related to the
use of EDLs or related documents.
Comments
Purpose. The author states that each year, 45 million vehicle
passengers and 15 million pedestrians cross the border into
California through the six ports of entry from Mexico. Long
wait times, as high as three to four hours, between Imperial
County and the Mexico border accounted for an estimated output
loss of $1.4 billion and 11,600 jobs lost nationally in 2007.
More recent studies indicate a $620 million loss due to
congestion at the Imperial County ports of entry and a nearly
$1.3 billion revenue loss at the San Diego ports of entry. The
author states that the EDL could both significantly reduce wait
times at the border and strengthen border security.
EDLs and RFID technology. An RFID tag with a power source is an
"active" tag that can transmit a radio wave transmitting
information to any reader in the area. An RFID without a power
source is a "passive" tag; a reader can remotely read the
information when the tag gets within a certain range of the
reader. While an RFID tag is similar to bar code technology, it
differs in that it can be read remotely, without having to swipe
the bar code, and in that much more information can be stored on
an RFID tag chip than on a bar code. The EDL proposed in this
bill would include a passive tag. In addition, as required by
the WHTI, this bill specifies that the EDL would contain only a
number that points to information housed in the border patrol's
secure database.
What about AB 60? AB 60 (Alejo, Chapter 524, Statutes of 2013)
requires the DMV to issue an original driver's license to an
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individual who is unable to submit satisfactory proof of legal
presence in the U.S. These applicants must meet all other
qualifications for licensure and must provide satisfactory proof
of identity and California residency. AB 60 specifies that a
license issued under these provisions is valid only for driving
privileges and cannot be used for identification or federal
purposes. The DMV began issuing these licenses on January 2,
2015. Because this bill requires that an individual must be a
U.S. citizen in order to obtain an EDL, individuals holding an
AB 60 driver's license would not be eligible.
Prior legislation. SB 397 (Hueso), which the Senate
Transportation and Housing Committee passed on an 11-0 vote in
2013 but the Assembly Appropriations Committee subsequently held
on the suspense file, was almost identical to this bill.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Initial DMV costs of approximately $4.37 million (Motor
Vehicle Account) over several fiscal years, to the extent DMV
implements a program to issue EDLs. These costs must be
incurred prior to collecting application fee revenues.
Ongoing DMV costs of approximately $641,000 in 2019-20, $1.28
million in 2021-22, and $1.22 million annually thereafter to
handle increased workload for Investigations and Privacy staff
and in field offices (Enhanced Driver's License and
Identification Subaccount, created by this bill).
Unknown revenue increases, beginning in 2019-20. If DMV set
the fee at the maximum of $55, it is estimated that
implementation and ongoing costs would be fully funded during
the 2021-2022 fiscal year. (Enhanced Driver's License and
Identification Subaccount).
Unknown workload costs to the Division of Labor Standards
Enforcement to handle any discrimination or retaliation
complaints against employers. (Labor Enforcement Compliance
Fund).
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SUPPORT: (Verified5/28/15)
Baja California State Government
Calexico Chamber of Commerce
California Chamber of Commerce
Casa Familiar
City of San Diego
El Centro Chamber of Commerce
Imperial County Transportation Commission
Mayor of Chula Vista
Otay Mesa Chamber of Commerce
San Diego Association of Governments
San Diego Regional Chamber
Smart Border Coalition
Two individuals
OPPOSITION: (Verified5/28/15)
American Civil Liberties Union
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The California Chamber of Commerce
(Cal Chamber) states that border delays result in the loss of
eight million trips each year. In the San Diego region alone,
this results in an estimated loss of $1.2 billion in revenues.
Cal Chamber states that by reducing border wait times, this bill
will promote economic growth through the increased movement of
both travelers and consumers.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: The American Civil Liberties Union
(ACLU) states that it has "profound privacy and security
concerns about the use of insecure Radio Frequency Identity
(RFID) computer chips in EDL identity documents."
Writing in opposition to the prior version of this bill, the
ACLU argued that RFID chips in EDLs are not as secure as those
used in passports, which use a different identifying number each
time the passport is used. The ACLU argued that RFIDs can
transmit the holder's identifying number, which is not
encrypted, up to 30 feet, which potentially compromises the
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holder's personally identifying information associated with that
number. Although this bill was amended in the Senate Judiciary
Committee to require DMV to inform the applicant in writing that
the randomly assigned RFID number can be read remotely without
the holder's knowledge, if the EDL is not enclosed in a
protective shield or similar tamper-resistant device, the ACLU
is still opposed to this bill.
Prepared by:Erin Riches / T. & H. / (916) 651-4121
5/31/15 13:09:37
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