BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 442|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 442
Author: Arambula (D)
Amended: 4/1/09 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 3-2, 6/9/09
AYES: Corbett, Florez, Leno
NOES: Harman, Walters
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 43-29, 4/20/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Notaries public
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill provides that a notary public may
reasonably rely on a Matricula consular issued by the
government of the United States of Mexico as proper
identification to prove the identity of an individual who
executes a written instrument.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law provides that the acknowledgment of an
instrument may not be taken unless the officer (notary
public) taking it has satisfactory evidence that the person
making the acknowledgment is the individual who is
described in and who executed the instrument. (Civil Code
Section 1185(a).)
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Existing law provides that "satisfactory evidence" means
the absence of any information, evidence, or other
circumstances that would lead a reasonable person to
believe that the person making the acknowledgment is not
the individual he/she claims to be plus the use of any one
of various specified ways of establishing the proper
identity of the person making the acknowledgment (such as
the oath or affirmation of a credible witness). (Civil
Code Section 1185(b).)
Existing law provides that the officer may reasonably rely
on the presentation of any one of the following, provided
that the document is current or has been issued within five
years and contains a photograph and description of the
person named on it, is signed by the person, and bears a
serial or other identifying number:
1. A passport issued by a foreign government.
2. A driver's license issued by a state other than
California or by a Canadian or Mexican public agency
authorized to issue driver's licenses.
3. A proper identification (ID) card issued by a state
other than California.
4. An ID card issued by any branch of the Armed Forces of
the United States.
5. An inmate ID card issued on or after January 1, 1988, by
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR),
if the inmate is in custody.
6. An employee ID card issued by an agency or office of the
State of California, or by an agency or office of a
city, county, or city and county in this state.
7. An inmate ID card issued prior to January 1, 1988,
issued by the DCR, if the inmate is in custody. (Civil
Code Section 1185(b)(4).)
This bill adds a Matricula consular issued by the
government of the United States of Mexico to the list of
proper identifications specified in Civil Code Section
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1185(b)(4) that an officer may reasonably rely on.
Background
Description of the Matricula consular and process for
obtaining . The Matricula consular is an official ID card
issued by the Mexican Government through its consulate
offices to Mexican nationals residing outside of Mexico
regardless of their emigration status. In 2002, Mexican
consulates in the U.S. began issuing a new High Security
Consular ID called the Matricula Consular de Alta Seguridad
(MCAS) (Consular Matriculation of High Security), also
known as the Mexican CID card. The card contains a photo,
digitalized signature, and individual number. Fingerprints
are taken and stored in the matricula database as biometric
information. The Mexican consular network in the U.S. (47
consulates) maintains a single database.
To obtain a Matricula consular an applicant must: (1)
appear in person; (2) present an original birth certificate
to prove Mexican nationality; (3) present an official
government issued photo ID to prove identity; and (4)
present proof of address (utility bill, lease, certified
mail) under the same name (a married woman may present
proof of address under her husband's name, as long as she
presents her marriage certificate).
Secondary requirements include: (1) telephone number; (2)
next of kin information; (3) if a married woman wishes to
use her married name, she must present an original marriage
certificate; and (4) in case of a lost or stolen ID, the
applicant must provide a police report to obtain a new
Matricula consular.
Security features of the Matricula consular . The Mexican
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) describes the visible and
hidden security features of the MCAS, the High Security
Matricula Consular:
1. Visible security features
A. Green security paper, with the Official Mexican
Seal watermarked in a special security pattern.
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B. Photograph cancelled with Advantage technology
seal which changes from green to brown.
C. Under fluorescent light, the letters "SRE"
appear all over the front.
D. The same special serial issue number on both the
front and back.
E. Infrared band on upper back, and, since 2005,
the new model has an over bi-dimensional ID bar
code.
2. Hidden security features; front side
A. The MCAS's hidden security features can only be
seen with a special decoder, provided by the
Mexican consulates.
B. The word "Mexico" is printed on the left side,
next to the holder's picture and "Matricula
Consular Consular ID" at the bottom.
C. "SRE" is printed three times on the right side.
D. "SRE" is also printed over the holder's picture
along with his/her name.
E. Turning the decoder 90 degrees on the lower left
corner of the picture, "SRE" and the holder's birth
date appear.
3. Hidden security features; back side
A. The MCAS issued since 2005, includes a
Bi-dimensional Bar Code and Optical Character
Recognition.
B. On all previous MCAS, "Doc-u-Lock" codified text
appears on the green bar where the holder's name,
date of expiration, serial number and issuing
office's name appear.
C. In both types of MCAS, rotating the decoder 90
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degrees, "SRE" appears several times.
Examples of entities that currently recognize the Matricula
consular as a valid form of ID . The Los Angeles Mexican
Consulate (LAMC) reports that, as of 2005, 178 banks in the
U.S. accept the Matricula consular as a valid form of ID to
open a bank account. Several major banks, including Bank
of America, US Bank, and Wells Fargo are among the banks
accepting Matricula consular. The LAMC also reports that
377 cities, 163 counties, and 1,180 sheriffs' and police
departments nationwide recognize the Matricula consular as
a valid form of ID. Also in 2005, the Los Angeles Board of
Supervisors approved an amendment to existing Board policy
regarding acceptance of Foreign Consulate Identification
Cards for identification purposes only. In March 2009, the
City of Los Angeles announced a new program to help
low-income households open bank accounts. Banks
participating in the program, including Bank of America and
Citibank, will not require new applicants to produce a
Social Security number and will accept other forms of
recognized of identification, including the Matricula
consular.
According to various sources, the Federal Reserve has not
specifically stated that banks should allow the use of
Matricula Consular, but it does not object to their use as
a form of identification. In a 2002 report to Congress,
the U.S. Treasury Department stated that "the regulations
[governing a non-U.S. person seeking to open an account]
state that financial institutions may accept one or more of
the following: a U.S. taxpayer identification number; a
passport number and country of issuance; an alien
identification card number; or the number and country of
issuance of any other government-issued document evidencing
nationality or residence and bearing a photograph or
similar safeguard." (Emphasis added.) "Thus, the proposed
regulations do not discourage bank acceptance of the
'matricula consular' identity card that is being issued by
the Mexican government to immigrants."
Finally, Bank on America, Governor Schwarzeneggar's 2008
initiative to help Californians open bank accounts,
encourages financial institutions to relax identification
requirements when opening a bank account to include Mexican
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CID cards.
Prior Legislation
AB 1870 (De Leon), of 2008 , would have allowed secondhand
and coin dealers to rely upon a Matricula consular as a
form of identification in addition to another item bearing
an address. This bill was vetoed.
AB 522 (Diaz), of 2003 , among other things, would have
required every city, county, and city and county officer or
employee to accept for purposes of personal identification
an ID card issued by the Mexican Consulate Office, the same
as a driver's license or ID card issued by the DMV, or
Matricula Consular, except as specified. The bill would
also have limited the use of a Matricula Consular, or
information collected from, or appearing thereon. This
bill was vetoed.
AB 25 (Nunez), of 2002 , among other things, would have
required state agencies to accept as valid identification
of a person a foreign ID card issued by another nation, as
defined, to its citizens or nationals, subject to specified
exceptions, if specified requirements are met. The bill
would have provided that a foreign ID card would not by
itself establish eligibility for employment, voter
registration, or public benefits. This bill died on the
Senate Inactive File.
ACR 229 (Diaz and Firebaugh), Resolution Chapter 187,
Statutes of 2002 , urged cities and counties throughout
California, including their respective agencies, to accept
the Mexican Consular ID cards, known as the "Matricula
Consular," as an official form of identification.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/10/09)
Alianza Latinoamericana por los Derechos de los Inmigrantes
California Catholic Conference
California La Raza Lawyers Association
California League of United Latin American Citizens
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California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
Central Valley Partnership for Citizenship
Chicano Federation of San Diego, Inc.
Immigration Legal Resource Center
La Raza Lawyers' Association, Central Valley Chapter
Law Office of Gilbert Zavala
PICO California
OPPOSITION : (Verified 6/10/09)
National Notary Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office states, lack
of identification prevents individuals from accessing many
services, such as having their documents notarized. Powers
of Attorney or Carta Poder [power of attorney] going to a
foreign country, general or living will, grant deeds, and
all documents to be recorded require notarization. It is
critical that people be able to identify themselves for
notarization purposes. Documents that are notarized add
verification and authenticity, protect families from
litigation and fraud, and help families preserve what is
lawfully theirs.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The National Notary Association
(NNA) opposes this bill on the grounds that it may not be a
secure or reliable form of identification. The NNA writes,
"There simply is no need for this legislation when the
Civil Code has already provided more secure forms of
identification documents - including Mexican driver's
licenses and passports - to identify Mexican nationals. ?
The enactment of this legislation would require Notaries to
recognize a card of proven unreliability, weakening the
California notarial system that protects the public from
forged real property deeds (and other important documentary
transactions) and prevents identity crimes. ? Notaries in
this state must not be forced to accept a card that the
U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of
Investigation declare is not a trustworthy identifier."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Ammiano, Arambula, Beall, Blumenfield, Brownley,
Caballero, Carter, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon,
Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani,
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Gilmore, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huffman, Jones, Lieu,
Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Monning, Nava, John A.
Perez, Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas, Skinner,
Solorio, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Yamada,
Bass
NOES: Adams, Anderson, Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill,
Blakeslee, Conway, Cook, DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson,
Fletcher, Fuller, Gaines, Garrick, Hagman, Harkey, Huber,
Jeffries, Knight, Logue, Miller, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, Silva, Smyth, Audra Strickland, Tran, Villines
NO VOTE RECORDED: Block, Buchanan, Charles Calderon,
Chesbro, Hall, Krekorian, V. Manuel Perez, Saldana
RJG:do 6/10/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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