By MAUREEN DOHERTY
BOSTON — Lawmakers approved House Bill 4461 by a margin of 120-36 on Feb. 16 to allow the Registrar of Motor Vehicles the ability to grant drivers’ licenses to undocumented immigrants. It has been sent to the Senate where it is poised to be supported by a potentially veto-proof majority.
The Transcript reached out to House Minority Leader Brad Jones (R-North Reading), who had voted against the bill – officially called the Work and Family Mobility Act and now known as House Bill 4470 – for comment.
“I could not support the bill because I have serious concerns about the message it sends, how it will be enforced, and whether it will truly improve road safety as its proponents have claimed,” Rep. Jones stated.
“Making drivers’ licenses available to undocumented immigrants is unfair to those individuals who have followed the law to secure lawful presence status or citizenship,” Jones continued. “In addition, this proposal creates an added burden on employees at the Registry of Motor Vehicles by requiring them to determine if a foreign document presented by an applicant is legitimate and hasn’t been forged, and on municipal clerks by making it more difficult for them to verify the identity and eligibility of someone who is using a driver’s license to register to vote.”
Jones added, “I’m also concerned that many individuals who will now be eligible for a license will instead continue to drive without a license and without insurance, either because they distrust the government and won’t come forward to apply or because they don’t want to pay the added costs of carrying insurance.”
In Massachusetts, there now exists two types of drivers’ licenses because the federal government required the state to get into compliance with federal law in developing a more secure form of license, called a Real ID, that will enable the holders to board domestic flights and enter some federal buildings. Without a Real ID, travelers will eventually need a valid passport to board domestic flights. The implementation of this requirement continues to be pushed back, most recently during the pandemic.
Undocumented immigrants would not be granted a Real ID under this bill. Instead, they would be granted a Massachusetts driver’s license which is the same type of license granted to any citizen of the commonwealth who opted not to provide the RMV with the additional documentation required for a Real ID, such as a long form birth certificate, passport or Social Security card.
According to Jones’ office, under the Work and Family Mobility Act, individuals who cannot provide proof of “lawful presence,” or who are ineligible for a Social Security number will still be able to obtain a driver’s license “if the applicant meets all other qualifications for licensure and provides satisfactory proof to the Registrar of their identity, date of birth and Massachusetts residency.”
Section 5 of the bill requires that applicants submit two documents to prove their identity and date of birth. Specifically:
“One document shall be: (1) a valid unexpired foreign passport; or (2) a valid unexpired Consular Identification document. The other document shall be: (1) a valid unexpired driver’s license from any United States’ state or territory; (2) an original or certified copy of a birth certificate; (3) a valid unexpired foreign national identification card; (4) a valid unexpired foreign driver’s license; or (5) a marriage certificate or divorce decree issued by any state or territory of the United States.
The bill states: “One document submitted as proof of an applicant’s identity pursuant to this paragraph shall include a photograph and one document submitted as proof of an applicant’s identity pursuant to this paragraph shall include a date of birth. Any documents submitted as proof of an applicant’s identity pursuant to this paragraph that are in any language other than English shall be accompanied by a certified translation translating the document to English.”
Both versions of the bill include language in Section 7 stipulating that the Registrar of Motor Vehicles shall not disclose “personally identifying information and communications” regarding any applicant for a Massachusetts driver’s license or learner’s permit, “including failure to provide proof of lawful presence in the United States,” unless specifically authorized to do so under regulations that are to be promulgated by the Attorney General’s office.
Due to his concern that these drivers’ licenses issued to undocumented immigrants could potentially be presented to city or town clerks throughout the commonwealth as an identification to register to vote, Jones filed Amendment #5 which would “allow municipal clerks to access information from the Registrar to help verify the identity and eligibility of someone using a Massachusetts license to vote or to register to vote.”
Titled “Disclosure of information to municipal clerks,” the amendment filed by Jones sought to amend section 7, line 66 by adding the following sentence: “Said regulations shall, at a minimum, require the registrar of motor vehicles to provide information on the holder of a Massachusetts license to any city or town clerk seeking to verify the identity and eligibility of any individual using a Massachusetts license to vote or to register to vote.”
His amendment was co-sponsored by Reps. Ferguson of Holden, Frost of Auburn, Gifford of Wareham, Barrows of Mansfield, and Smola of Warren, with additional co-sponsors Reps. David K. Muradian Jr., Timothy R. Whelan, Colleen M. Garry and David Allen Robertson. The amendment was rejected by a vote of 31-125.
In voting against the amendment, Rep. Patricia Farley-Bouvier (D-Pittsfield) told Beacon Hill Roll Call that she opposed it “due to the violation of privacy that would occur had it been adopted not just for immigrants without legal status who would newly be applying for standard driver’s licenses, but also for all license applicants.”
According to BHRC, Bouvier stated that the bill “was carefully drafted to protect the privacy of all who are applying for licenses in Massachusetts and ensure immigrants without status would trust that their legal status would not be disclosed beyond the standards for all current license holders i.e. for law enforcement investigations or insurance purposes.”
Same day voter registration bill pending
For Jones, however, a key motivating factor in crafting and filing his amendment goes beyond the matter of granting drivers’ licenses to undocumented immigrants. According to a statement released by his office: “There is currently legislation pending in conference committee (House Bill 4367 and Senate Bill 2554) to provide for same day voter registration, including election day registration. Both bills would allow for the use of a valid Massachusetts license as a means of registering to vote and voting, but neither bill would provide an opportunity for local clerks to run a check with the RMV to prevent voter fraud.”
Now that the Work and Family Mobility Act has passed the House it has been sent to the Senate for consideration. While a specific date has not been announced as of press time when the Senate will take up the bill, Senate President Karen Spilka is eager to take up the measure, according to a statement she gave to the State House News Service last Wednesday night following the House vote.
“As the granddaughter of immigrants, I have been a longtime supporter of the idea behind the Work and Family Mobility Act,” Spilka said. “I know that there are many Senators who support it as well, so I am excited to see progress is being made on this measure, because individuals and families deserve to feel safe, and drivers’ licenses for all qualified state residents is good for our economy and public safety. As the bill now heads to the Senate, I very much look forward to having further discussions with our membership on this issue.”
While Governor Baker has not explicitly stated whether he would veto the bill if it reaches his desk, he has made it clear that he supports the current practice of making driver’s licenses available to individuals who can prove their “lawful presence” in the U.S. in multiple published reports over the years.
Gov. Baker was quoted in a February 17 article by Bruce Mohl in CommonWealth Magazine as supporting Rep. Jones’ amendment to authorize the RMV to release information to municipal clerks in response to inquiries about individuals using a license to vote or to register to vote According to the article Baker said he wished Jones’s amendment had passed. “That would have been a big statement by the Legislature that this really is about driving and not anything else,” he said. (https://commonwealthmagazine.org/immigration/baker-not-satisfied-with-immigrant-license-bill/).
If Baker were to veto the bill, the Legislature would need a two-thirds vote in both branches to override his veto. According to Jones’s office, assuming no member of the House changes their position on the bill, the House would have more than enough votes to override a potential veto. Over in the Senate, a minimum of 27 votes would be needed in the 40-member body to override a potential veto by the governor.
Constituents who wish to express their opinion for or against the bill pending before the Senate may contact their senator. North Reading’s state senator is Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester). A full list of Senators, along with their phone numbers and e-mail addresses, can be found at: https://malegislature.gov/Legislators/Members/Senate.