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Date Posted: 18:17:09 02/06/08 Wed
Author: JMR
Subject: License problems for illegals

License rules spark first rejections

Stricter criteria lead DMV to turn some drivers away

THELMA GUERRERO-HUSTON
GUERRERO-HUSTON

February 5, 2008

Mirjana Mititiero did not take kindly to Oregon's new driver's license rules.

Mititiero was at the Driver and Motor Vehicles Division office on Portland Road NE on Monday trying to help her husband replace his Oregon driver's license after his wallet was stolen Sunday.

"I didn't think it would affect us like this," Mititiero said. "My husband's driver's license and green card were in his wallet. I don't know what's going to happen, now."

At least a dozen driver's license seekers were turned away at the main DMV office as new stricter rules governing Oregon driver's licenses took effect Monday.

Most of those who were rejected access to a license did not have a verifiable Social Security number, or a birth certificate or a passport, or proof of an Oregon address and identity, said Bill Halsne, the manager of the North Salem DMV field office.

"No angry outbursts from anybody," Halsne said. "Some weren't happy, but most understood."

The new regulations also apply to instruction permits and identification cards.

The changes are part of an executive order issued in November by Gov. Ted Kulongoski. It's aimed at denying illegal immigrants access to Oregon driver's licenses.

Among other things, the new regulations require license seekers to show proof of identity and an Oregon address, and a Social Security number that would be verified with the federal Social Security Administration.

The changes were implemented on the same day that lawmakers returned to Salem for the start of a controversial four-week special session.

During the session, the politicians are expected to take up two separate but similar pieces of legislation that would go beyond the executive order to require proof of legal presence to get a driver's license.

If approved, the new laws would supercede the executive order.

Although not an immigration debate, the issue has become divisive.

Groups opposed to and those in favor of granting licenses to undocumented immigrants have shown up in droves at legislative hearings about the proposed measures.

Even so, such proof is required if Oregon residents are to be allowed to board commercial airplanes or enter federal buildings.

Although the measures do not call for compliance with the federal Real ID Act, they comply with at least one provision of the act, which calls for proof that a person is in the country legally.

But for Mititiero, whose husband is a legal resident from Italy, the notion of compliance with federal rules is neither here nor there.

"My husband could lose his job because of this," Mititiero said. "That means we could lose our home."

tguerrero@StatesmanJournal.com or
(503) 399-6815

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