Did you hear the rumbling? Feel the ground shake?
On Jan. 2, the doors to the Hall of Officially Licensed Drivers opened for the first time to undocumented immigrants in the state of California. I don’t think that our leaders intended the first day for new applications to be on a Friday, but that’s how the start to 2015 has shaken out, what with the first day of the year, a Thursday, being a holiday and all.
Before the end of last year, state officials said they were expecting Gov. Jerry Brown’s official signing of the law to bring more than a million new drivers into the system over the next few years. Yow! That’s ostensibly more than a million drivers who are actually already driving and will only technically be new drivers in that they’re licensed, but still: Yow!
The idea is to give a license to someone who’s not currently a legal driver, but who operates a vehicle on public streets anyway. This will, in theory, ensure that such drivers get proper safety training, learn the rules of the road, and have a greater stake in being responsible car users who properly share the surface streets and highways of this state with everyone else.
It seems like a good idea, right?
I’m not an undocumented immigrant, so I can’t claim to know the thought process of someone who came into this country by channels other than the official ones, but one detail of this whole story gave me pause. I know that the new system is being heralded as an amazing step forward for traffic safety and residents’ rights—regardless of how those residents arrived here—but the detail that caught my eye involves three words printed on these new licenses: “FEDERAL LIMITS APPLY.”
Those words will indicate that the card’s holder would be able to participate in the sort of state-level activities that such a card allows, but wouldn’t be allowed to participate in federally regulated activities. A person with this card wouldn’t, for instance, be allowed to use it as ID to board a plane.
That’s not what gave me pause, though. I mean, the whole state-versus-federal angle makes sense to me.
But putting those words onto every license given to an undocumented immigrant is essentially giving each such driver a label. They will become card-carrying undocumented immigrants, easy to identify as such with a quick check. Every DUI checkpoint, every routine stop will present an opportunity for someone in law enforcement to easily see the residency status of the holder.
One problem the people behind this change are seeking to remedy is the ongoing issue of drivers leaving the scenes of car accidents and wrecks—a sight familiar to Santa Marians. Unlicensed drivers tend to flee when put into situations that would require them to produce a license, such as fender benders or even upcoming checkpoints.
“There shouldn’t be any reason for them to flee now, as long as they’ve got their license and are insured,” Santa Maria Police Chief Ralph Martin told the Sun at the tail end of 2014.
I say “shouldn’t” is a big word—or at least it leaves a big hole that law-enforcement agents can use in the future. I’m not saying that the chief, or the SMPD, or anyone in law enforcement in California necessarily has designs on going beyond the stated scope of intent behind an ID with a note on it that indicates the bearer isn’t a legal citizen. But I wouldn’t rule out the notion that somewhere between Oregon and the Mexican border, some officer is going to pull over some driver, see “FEDERAL LIMITS APPLY” on the ID, and at least think, “OK, so I’ve got me one of these.”
Then what happens?
I haven’t seen much in the way of such criticism in the major media outlets that have covered this law change, but I have seen mentions of similar fears here and there—nothing major, though, which brings me back to one of my earlier comments: I’m not an undocumented immigrant. I’m also not a lawmaker.
Perhaps the challenges and worries associated with being in the country illegally aren’t what they used to be. I can remember immigration status being a big secret a decade or so ago. Reporters didn’t want to expose their sources as undocumented citizens for fear of catching some official’s eye and kickstarting the deportation process.
Now, everybody seems fine with essentially getting stamped with their citizenship status, trusting that this state, this country, that hasn’t officially welcomed them is nevertheless counting on them to participate in a functioning society: obeying its laws, following its regulations, and—please, please, please!—continuing to, at least in the Santa Maria area, take the backbreaking jobs that feed us all.
The Canary doesn’t believe in limits. She is limitless. Send comments, ideas, or tips to canary@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jan 8-15, 2015.