07 AM 28
0792
ADOPTED
SENATE
The
Senate Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee offered the following
amendment:
Amend
HB 69 (LC 34 0913) by striking lines 1 and 2 on page 1 and inserting in lieu
thereof the following:
To state findings of the General Assembly regarding the Real ID Act; to amend Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to drivers´ licenses, so as to permit the Governor of Georgia to delay implementing the requirements of the Real ID Act until the Department of Homeland Security has issued regulations that the Governor finds will adequately protect the interests of the citizens of Georgia; to require the presentation of secure and verifiable documents for purposes of obtaining a driver´s license by a noncitizen; to prohibit the Department of Driver Services
To state findings of the General Assembly regarding the Real ID Act; to amend Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to drivers´ licenses, so as to permit the Governor of Georgia to delay implementing the requirements of the Real ID Act until the Department of Homeland Security has issued regulations that the Governor finds will adequately protect the interests of the citizens of Georgia; to require the presentation of secure and verifiable documents for purposes of obtaining a driver´s license by a noncitizen; to prohibit the Department of Driver Services
By
striking lines 7 and 8 on page 1 and inserting in lieu thereof the
following:
The General Assembly of Georgia finds that the Real ID Act, H.R. 1268, P.L. 109-13, enacted by Congress in 2005, established standards that state-issued drivers´ licenses and identification cards must meet by May 11, 2008, if the licenses or identification cards are to be accepted as valid identification by the federal government. After May 11, 2008, federal agencies are scheduled to accept only drivers´ licenses or identification cards that meet Real ID standards. Noncompliant cards will not be accepted for federal purposes such as boarding a domestic flight, opening a bank account, or any other service or activity over which the federal government claims jurisdiction. Each state will also be required to share data from their drivers´ licenses or identification cards data base with other states. The exact requirements of the Real ID Act have yet to be defined. The Department of Homeland Security was originally going to promulgate regulations by November, 2005. That date was changed to November, 2006. Currently, regulations are scheduled for January, 2007, but many parties feel this deadline may also pass without the regulations being issued.
The General Assembly of Georgia finds that the Real ID Act, H.R. 1268, P.L. 109-13, enacted by Congress in 2005, established standards that state-issued drivers´ licenses and identification cards must meet by May 11, 2008, if the licenses or identification cards are to be accepted as valid identification by the federal government. After May 11, 2008, federal agencies are scheduled to accept only drivers´ licenses or identification cards that meet Real ID standards. Noncompliant cards will not be accepted for federal purposes such as boarding a domestic flight, opening a bank account, or any other service or activity over which the federal government claims jurisdiction. Each state will also be required to share data from their drivers´ licenses or identification cards data base with other states. The exact requirements of the Real ID Act have yet to be defined. The Department of Homeland Security was originally going to promulgate regulations by November, 2005. That date was changed to November, 2006. Currently, regulations are scheduled for January, 2007, but many parties feel this deadline may also pass without the regulations being issued.
Because
the Real ID Act was attached to a vital supplemental spending bill for defense
and tsunami relief, there was no opportunity for a full examination of the
consequences of the proposal. While everyone recognizes the need to make
identifying documents as secure as is humanly possible, the one-size-fits-all
approach required by the Real ID Act may actually increase the documents´
vulnerability to counterfeiting. If criminals are able to invade one
state´s system, they may have access to all states´ systems. On
another front, a report from the National Conference of State Legislatures, the
National Governors Association, and the American Association of Motor Vehicle
Administrators suggests that the new requirements of the Real ID Act will cost
states at least $11 billion over the first five years of the program. Despite
this massive price tag, there has been no money appropriated to help states meet
the law´s demands.
The
Real ID Act gives the Department of Homeland Security the power to set federal
standards and determine whether state drivers´ licenses and other
identification cards meet these standards. There is no provision in the Real ID
Act that requires or even mentions information privacy or data security. The
federal and state governments must ensure that the data needed to verify the
identity of driver´s license applicants is maintained securely and not
used for other unrelated purposes. The Department of Homeland Security must
include privacy protections for personal driver data as they promulgate
regulations spelling out what states need to do to implement the federal law.
Success of the Real ID Act depends on the Department of Homeland Security and
the states collaborating to find a way of implementing its requirements in a
fiscally responsible and risk adjusted manner. Therefore, the Georgia
Department of Driver Services is directed to withhold any legislation designed
to implement the Real ID Act in Georgia until such time as the Department of
Homeland Security has enacted regulations that define the exact type of
information that is to be required on a state driver´s license.
Furthermore, before the Real ID Act is implemented in Georgia, the Governor of
Georgia is entitled to review the regulations promulgated by the Department of
Homeland Security and determine if they adequately safeguard and restrict use of
the information in order to protect the privacy rights of the citizens of
Georgia.
The
citizens of Georgia also recognize the importance of ensuring that drivers´
licenses are issued only to persons legally present in this state. Therefore,
the use of secure and verifiable identification will be required in this state
in order to obtain a driver´s license. This requirement is in harmony with
the intent of the Real ID Act to secure identification processes in this
country. The Department of Driver Services is instructed to take the necessary
steps to become a participant in the SAVE Program (Systematic Alien Verification
for Entitlements). This program, administered by the United States Bureau of
Citizenship and Immigration Services, is designed to verify the immigration
status of noncitizens.
SECTION
2.
Chapter
5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
drivers´ licenses, is amended by revising subsection (j) of Code Section
40-5-2, relating to records to be kept on drivers in Georgia, as
follows:
By
redesignating Sections 2 and 3 as Sections 5 and 6, respectively and inserting
after line 15 on page 1 the following:
SECTION
3.
Said
chapter is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as
follows:
"40-5-4.1.
The
Governor of the State of Georgia, or his or her designee, is authorized to delay
compliance with certain provisions of the federal Real ID Act, H.R. 1268, P.L.
109-13, enacted by Congress in 2005, until it is expressly guaranteed by the
Department of Homeland Security, through adequately defined safeguards, that
implementation of the Real ID Act will not compromise the economic privacy or
biological sanctity of any citizen or resident of the State of
Georgia."
SECTION
4.
Said
chapter is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as
follows:
"40-5-21.2.
(a)
As used in this Code section, the term:
(1)
'Department' means the Georgia Department of Driver Services.
(2)
'SAVE Program' means the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE)
Program established by the United States Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration
Services.
(b)
The department shall not issue an identification card, license, permit, or other
official document to an applicant who is a noncitizen, until the applicant has
been confirmed through the SAVE Program to be lawfully present in the United
States.
(c)
This Code section shall not apply to instances when a federal law mandates
acceptance of a document."
By
striking line 17 on page 1 and inserting in lieu thereof the
following:
This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law without such approval.
This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law without such approval.