September 27, 2007

New York county clerks oppose Spitzer on driver's licenses for illegal aliens

New York governor Eliot Spitzer wants to allow illegal aliens to obtain driver's licenses. Now, some county clerks are pushing back:

[Otsego County Clerk Kathy Sinnott-Gardner says:] "I don't see why we should make the requirements more lenient for illegal immigrants than they are for our own citizens."

...State Assemblyman Peter Lopez, R-Schoharie, a former county clerk, said, "I'm stunned. This doesn't make any sense, and I think it puts our communities at risk."

...State Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, said he doesn't believe that Spitzer has the legal authority to circumvent the state law mandating Social Security numbers or SSA documents to obtain a driver's license.

"I can't believe that in the post-9/11 era, the governor is doing this," Seward said.

..."How can we be more secure with less security?" [Frank Merola, a Republican who is Rensselaer County clerk] said Tuesday. "What this is going to do is diminish the value of a license as an indication that someone is here legally. I don't see how that helps at all."

There may be a special session of their legislature in October. Those clerks opposed to rule may ask applicants to go to offices run by the state itself.

On the other side, those apparently supporting Spitzer's plan include: acting State Police Superintendent Preston Felton, state Insurance Superintendent Eric Dinallo, and state Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Balboni.

Posted to Immigration_dls at September 27, 2007 02:41 PM