Minnesota poised to pass Driver's License for All
Northsider Susanna Guzman has been part of a movement pushing for the State of Minnesota to give undocumented residents the right to apply for a driver’s license. Photo by David Pierini
By David Pierini, Editor
Susanna Guzman’s life in Minnesota has been harder because of one thing the state won’t give her – a driver’s license.
A 10-minute drive to her work from her Northside home requires three buses each way. A nephew got deported to Mexico after police pulled him over while driving Guzman’s sister to her kidney dialysis appointment. Police detained him and left the man’s mother to walk to the hospital.
Guzman, 62, could not get to the hospital in time when that same sister later died from cancer. And she fretted while her own daughter went on hunger strikes to draw attention to the cause of undocumented residents trying to get a license.
“I have these memories,” Guzman said. “It would be a dream for me to get my driver’s license. Not just me, everybody. You can’t get a car without a driver’s license, you can’t get places without one. If I could get a license I would drive everyone.”
Guzman and more than 80,000 undocumented people living in Minnesota have their best chance this year as lawmakers consider a bill to grant them the right to apply for a driver’s license.
Since 2003, applicants had to show proof of citizenship to get a license, a mandate started by then Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty over growing fears following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Attitudes have shifted and what was once largely seen as a cause supported only by Democrats has growing bipartisan support. Legislative committee hearings have been packed with a wide range of people speaking in support of eliminating the mandate.
Companion bills from the House and Senate have swiftly moved through committee hearings. The House is expected to begin floor debates Monday afternoon before a final vote.
In addition to residents like Guzman, representatives of law enforcement, the business community and agricultural sector have testified in favor of a law that would grant undocumented people the right to apply for a license.
“It would be a dream for me to get my driver’s license. Not just me, everybody. You can’t get a car without a driver’s license, you can’t get places without one. If I could get a license I would drive everyone.”
“You have a number of Republicans who always saw this as an immigration bill,” said state Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-District 59, who is co-sponsoring the Senate bill and has authored DLA bills in the last three sessions in an attempt to do away with the citizenship requirement. “I’ve pushed it as a public safety bill and an opportunity to allow folks who have made valuable contributions to our state to be able to drive the kids to school or drive to work. They should be allowed to pass the driving tests and get insurance so that all are safe.”
Framed as a public safety issue, residents without legal status would have to pass a driver’s test to get their license and be required to purchase insurance to drive like everyone else. According to the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, states that allow Driver’s License privileges to undocumented residents saw significant drops in uninsured drivers. Some states reported decreases in hit-and-run accidents.
As an economic issue, workers lacking economic status would have access to more full-time jobs, which increases spending power. A study out of Oregon estimated states barring immigrants lacking legal status from getting a license could cost a state as much as $200 million in lost gross domestic product because of the difficulty of going to work without the ability to drive.
During the shutdowns at the start of the pandemic, 42 percent of the essential service workforce in Minneapolis were immigrants, said Grace Waltz, Vice President of public policy at the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce.
“Immigrants played a critical role in our region’s ability to weather the pandemic,” she said. They were 18 percent of healthcare workers, 18 percent food service workers, 25 percent of warehouse workers and 15 percent essential retail trade. These industries already include disproportionately populated by immigrants and refugees are the same industries that are still struggling to find workers today.
“Most people need a car to get to work and employers need and want them to be able to do that safely.”
Critics of the DLA bill say it makes elections more vulnerable to voter fraud, but in a letter to the Senate Transportation Finance and Policy Committee, Secretary of State Steve Simon rejected this concern saying licenses have never been used for proof of citizenship. At the polls, voters must sign a document swearing under oath that they are a U.S. citizen.
“The penalties for violation are severe—not only is it a felony but it is also a deportable offense and can be a permanent bar to citizenship for those on the path to citizenship,” Simon wrote. “Finally, let me add that this issue is personal to me. My mother was a green card holder for over 30 years. She never became a United States citizen. As much as she inspired me in public service, she never cast a ballot in a United States election. But she did carry a Minnesota driver’s license for decades. Her license looked just like yours or mine.”