AP (Colorado)
By Ivan Moreno
October 14, 2015
Colorado
immigrant advocates frustrated over long waiting periods for people who
want driver’s licenses regardless of their legal status vowed to
pressure lawmakers in
the coming months to free up money so the program can meet demand.
A
coalition of immigrant rights groups said this week that they would be
lobbying lawmakers to allow more offices to issue the special licenses,
but they will have a difficult
time convincing Republicans who dislike the program and have gained
control over half of Colorado’s Legislature.
The
GOP has fought back in other states that give licenses to those in the
U.S. illegally or with temporary legal status. In New Mexico, Republican
Gov. Susana Martinez,
the nation’s only Latina governor, has tried to repeal the law a number
of times, but her efforts have stalled in the Democratic-controlled
Senate.
Ten
states and the District of Columbia have such programs, which
supporters say help keep immigrants insured and informed about the rules
of the road. Opponents argue
that the licenses condone illegal behavior.
In
Colorado, Democrats who approved the program two years ago without
Republican support are now facing a GOP-controlled state Senate. That
has given Republicans power
over whether to authorize the state Department of Revenue, which
oversees motor vehicle offices, to allocate money toward additional
license appointments.
Immigrants
are waiting months to get specialized driver’s licenses and
identification cards through three offices. They are charged more than
legal residents, and the
fees they pay fund the program.
“None
of these hikes in rates have helped our community,” said Victor Galvan,
Denver organizer for the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition. “That
money belongs to the
community.”
The
special driver’s licenses cost $50.50, compared with the $21 that legal
residents pay. Immigrant identification cards are $14, also higher than
the $10.50 paid by
everyone else.
Galvan’s
organization and other immigrant advocates, including Mi Familia Vota
and Driver’s Licenses for All, plan to begin lobbying legislators next
month as they start
work on a new state budget.
Colorado vastly underestimated the initial surge in demand for the licenses, a problem Democrats are now facing.
Since
the program became operational in August 2014, 14,299 immigrants have
received driver’s licenses and an additional 2,218 have received driving
permits, according
to state figures. An additional 2,278 have gotten ID cards.
“We
believe it’s fully funded — fully funded to the law that was passed,”
said Republican Sen. Kent Lambert, who chairs the budget-writing Joint
Budget Committee.
But immigrant groups say many more are waiting for licenses. Appointments are being booked 90 days in advance.
“Demand
for this program has been very high,” said Daria Serna, spokeswoman for
the Colorado Department of Revenue. “Once appointments are released,
they usually go very
quickly and we do not have appointments go unclaimed. Our available
resources do not allow us to serve everyone interested in this program
in a timely manner.”
However,
she also notes that people are not showing up — there have been more
than 5,000 missed appointments since the program launched.
Back
then, appointments were handled at five locations. The Department of
Revenue asked in January to spend $166,000 in program fees to
permanently hire some temporary
workers and potentially expand to other offices to address high demand.
The
department is now operating three offices under a compromise that party
leaders struck in March to allow the agency to use $66,000 in fees.
Colorado
has 180,000 residents in the country illegally, according to the Pew
Charitable Trusts, which released a study in August on the states that
allow driver’s licenses
regardless of legal status.
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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