While some in law enforcement have backed the bill, many have declined to take a position, according to Republican state Rep. Timothy Whelan, of Brewster. Baker vetoed the bill last month, saying in a letter to the House that it "undoes a critical safeguard to the driver's license issuance process" and that the Registry of Motor Vehicles doesn't have the expertise or ability to verify many types of documents from other countries. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. She was a reporter for CommonWealth Magazine, and senior immigration reporter for Law360. We always have," Baker told the crowd at a New England Council event. The increase is "problematic for Massachusetts and for our country," said Commissioner Margret Cooke. The bill would not register undocumented immigrants to vote. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! That included Steve Kropper, co-chairman of Mass Coalition for Immigration Reform, who said he is a registered Democrat. It is unnecessary because we are just focused on the ability of someone to drive.. The new law will allow immigrants without legal status to apply for a standard state drivers license beginning July 1, 2023. ". No. Democrat Sens. Green card holders are required to explicitly demonstrate lawful presence, OK? Sen. Jim Guthrie (R-McCammon) testifies before the Senate Transportation Committee regarding his bill to make a restricted driver's license available to all Idaho Stay up to date with everything Boston. All rights reserved. Baker in the past has voiced support for broader voting by mail, and he signed both the temporary law and extensions to it during the public health crisis. The override was not the only display of political strength Democrats made this week. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. It could also prevent undocumented immigrants from fleeing police during a traffic stop for the sake of preventing identification as an undocumented immigrant and risking deportation, supporters say, according to SHNS. All rights reserved, Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter, Mass. At least one document must contain a photograph. Mass illegal immigration is what you wanted Sign up for the newsletter to receive periodic updates on Cato research, events, and publications. Nineteen states have laws in place that allow undocumented immigrants to obtain a drivers license, including Nevada, Utah, Oregon and Washington. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Full Worm Moon: Will Conditions In MA Favor A Moonbow? Room 8055, 5th floor. Immigration reform advocates and some public safety leaders have pressed, often loudly, for more than a decade to grant residents without legal status in the U.S. some form of access to driver's licenses. All rights reserved, 53K Mass. Baker voiced his concerns about the bill Thursday morning, SHNS reported. Maloney said she believes its absolutely possible to collect the signatures necessary to get on the ballot in November. Louis Casiano is a reporter for Fox News Digital. City hopes state legislature boosts shelter aid. Both Democratic candidates, Maura Healey and Sonia Chang-Daz, have voiced their support for the veto override. Democrat Sens. She said the benefits of allowing individuals to apply for a drivers license regardless of immigration status will become quickly apparent. It will also require all drivers to take a driving test and enroll in auto insurance, which will benefit the state financially. This bill would enable all qualified state residents to apply for a standard state drivers license, regardless of immigrant status, while keeping our Commonwealth in full compliance with REAL ID requirements. Gomez called concerns that the bill would unleash voter fraud a "red herring.". Immigration activists have long lobbied for the measure, saying it will help improve public safety including for those who already have drivers licenses by requiring that immigrants demonstrate they can properly operate a car and that they have obtained the needed insurance in the event of an accident. Connecticut saw a reduction of hit-and run crashes, and a decline in the number of people found guilty of unlicensed driving, a 2019 investigation by the GBH News Center for Investigative Reporting found. Existing state law prohibits anyone "who does not have lawful presence in the United States" from acquiring either a standard Massachusetts or expanded REAL ID-compliant driver's license. The 120-36 vote means the bill won the support of more than two-thirds of lawmakers in the Democratic-controlled House enough to override a potential veto by Baker. Banking as an Undocumented Immigrant. Report on 2014 legislation shows most domestic workers don't get basic rights and employers aren't trying to comply. This bill is a free ticket to government benefits, Lynch said. Its why 16 states and the District of Columbia already allow immigrants without legal status to get a drivers license if they meet certain conditions. Proponents said the measure will improve road safety and assuage immigrants worries of being revealed as undocumented and face deportation because of a routine traffic stop or accident. It would most likely require a two-thirds majority in each chamber of the Massachusetts Legislature for this bill to pass. WebMIRA is proud to be part of the Driving Families Forward Coalition, which is advocating for the Work and Family Mobility Act). the bill would go into effect on July 1, 2023, and could help an estimated 78,000 people in Massachusetts apply for a standard Massachusetts drivers license, WebThe state offers 2 types of licenses, 1 of which complies with the REAL ID law for those who can provide proof of lawful presence. The state House passed a similar bill by a veto-proof 120-36 margin in February. Although news of a possible repeal effort spread last week, Baker on Monday said he is "not familiar with that process" when asked if he would support the referendum, adding that he "made pretty clear what my rationale was for vetoing the law.". Former acting ICE director Tom Homan explains how President Biden's border strategy is enticing more illegal immigration and voices concerns with ICE's new policy to consider migrants' military service. Further, newly-licensed drivers are likely to generate an additional $5 million per year in tax revenue once the law is fully rolled out. With your support, GBH will continue to innovate, inspire and connect through reporting you value that meets todays moments. But for How Long? Opponents of a new law that will allow immigrants without legal status to seek driver's licenses took a preliminary step Monday toward asking voters to scrap the measure, while Democrats celebrated their success in pushing the bill and overcoming Gov. WebMIRA is proud to be part of the Driving Families Forward Coalition, which is advocating for the Work and Family Mobility Act). How legitimate are those concerns? Market data provided by Factset. "It basically means, in some respects, the Registry is going to be flying blind with respect to what it issues when it issues these licenses. Massachusetts to allow illegal immigrants to apply for drivers To put the question of whether the law should be repealed on the November ballot, petitioners will need to collect at least 40,120 signatures from registered voters, no more than 10,030 of which can come from a single county, in less than three months. They made their voices heard on Wednesday afternoon. The original version of the bill was introduced almost 20 years ago, and multiple iterations have cropped up and failed, including one from then-state Rep. Marty Walsh in 2007, who is now the U.S. Secretary of Labor. Now dip your toe in the water for two bucks , Five Social Policy Changes Maura Healey's Administration May, Unsure About Massachusetts Ballot Questions? Charlie Baker's veto of an immigrant driver's license access bill marched around the State House in Boston on Thursday, June 2, 2022. DUTIES. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. On Thursday, Crighton said, On the issue of voting, weve debunked it again and again, and again.. During the debate over the bill Thursday, SHNS reported, the five Democrats and three Republicans argued for having drivers licenses issued to undocumented immigrants reflect their undocumented status in some form. "I don't see this the same way the House and the Senate see it," Baker said Monday. Both chambers are controlled by Democrats. A Boston Globe-Suffolk University poll of 800 Massachusetts residents published in the spring showed residents were divided on the issue. The measure is about being safe on the road, according to Elizabeth Sweet, executive director of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition. Thats bad policy. Get all the latest from Sanditon on GBH Passport, How one Brookline studio helps artists with disabilities thrive. "We still need to do something like that if we really want to get our arms around this.". Allowing undocumented immigrants to get around more easily would allow them to increase their earning potential and employers right now are having trouble recruiting qualified workers amid a time of record low unemployment in the state. Minnesota state legislators recently passed the Drivers License for All bill (HF 4), which could pave the way for undocumented immigrants to get valid drivers licenses. Advocates renew push to license illegal immigrants. An aide to Baker said he supports existing state laws that allow those in the country legally to obtain drivers licenses. The bill creates two categories of drivers licenses and non-driver identification cards: federally-compliant REAL ID, which is only available for documented residents, and the Standard Basic drivers license and ID, which will be available to all New Jersey residents regardless of immigration status. Full transcript of Bidens State of the Union address, Mass. Even After Investigation, Stoneham Cop Hasn't Paid Dime of Rent to New Landlord, Tracking the Next Hit of Wintry Weather Headed to New England, Due Late Week, Power Lines Crash Onto Cars, Trucks for Blocks in Stoneham; Cause Unknown, Rescuers Capture Bald Eagle Believed to Be Critically Sickened by Rat Poison. We couldn't do it without you. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, A two-thirds vote in the House and Senate would override a potential veto by Baker. The Massachusetts State House in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston. And the main reason for that is no ones ever been able to explain to me how you can actually document and verify someone who is undocumented.. Together, we can create a more connected and informed world. We post scholarship opportunities that are open to undocumented students, strategies for navigating the educational system, information on how to apply for DACA/Advance Parole, news on DAPA, and much more. |Profile One amendment, offered by Fattman, would have required the RMV to transmit licensing information to any city or town clerk seeking to verify the identity of someone using a license to register to vote. Photo: Steph Solis/Axios Massachusetts is on track to become the 17th state to allow immigrants without legal status to obtain state-issued driver's licenses nearly two decades after the proposal first emerged. Charlie Baker. Opponents of undocumented drivers license bill point to potential for illegal voting. Legal Statement. Charlie Baker's formal opposition. An Act Relative To Work and Family Mobility During and Subsequent to the COVID-19 Emergency doesnt mention either drivers licenses or illegal immigrants. She was a reporter for CommonWealth Magazine, and senior immigration reporter for Law360. A bill that would make undocumented immigrants eligible for Massachusetts driver's licenses, appears poised for passage this week after more than 20 years in the making. Connecticut looks to join Massachusetts, others states in seeking ways to curb deadly highway wrong-way crashes. Bill sponsor Sen. Brendan Crighton, a Lynn Democrat, contended that bifurcating licenses awarded to immigrants without legal status and all other licenses could have a "chilling effect" on the bill's goal to get more drivers road tested. Sarah Betancourt is a bilingual reporter for GBH News, and longtime Boston muckraker. Lawmakers voted this week to override his veto of a bill that will allow illegal immigrants in the state to apply for a driver's license. A second kind of identification could include an unexpired drivers license from any US state or territory, a birth certificate, a valid unexpired foreign national identification card or foreign drivers license, or a marriage certificate issued in Massachusetts. Over the course of Thursday's debate, senators beat back attempts by Republicans and a handful of Democrats to distinguish the licenses that could be awarded to undocumented immigrants, either by offering them entirely separate "driver privilege cards" or by requiring a standard Massachusetts license issued to an immigrant without legal status to be printed in a different color or declare that it is not eligible as a form of identification. The law, signed by Gov. GBH News brings you the stories, local voices, and big ideas that shape our world. House lawmakers overwhelmingly supported the bill, which passed by a 120-36 vote. The margin was still more than the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto from the governor. If passed into law, immigrants would qualify for a Massachusetts standard driver's license if they presented valid proof of identity, date of birth and state residency. May 30, 2022 Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has vetoed a bill that would allow immigrants without legal status to get driver's licenses. Charlie Baker delivers his state of the state address Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020, in the House Chamber at the Statehouse, in Boston. When Sen. William Brownsberger read out the final result, attendees in the Senate gallery erupted into applause and cheers some shouting "thank you" loud enough to prompt Brownsberger to bang the gavel and ask them to quiet down. "We believe that could lead to stigma, open up opportunities to discriminate," Crighton said. Charlie Baker's opposition. Dongpeng Debao Commercial Center. Senators voted 10-29 to reject Fattman's amendment. Get all the latest from Sanditon on GBH Passport, How one Brookline studio helps artists with disabilities thrive. 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