Maryland has a duty to offer secure licenses
Published March 09, 2008
By Del. RON GEORGE

The Proof of Legal Presence Act of 2008, of which I am the lead sponsor, requires that any person applying for a driver's license in Maryland show documentation that he or she is a citizen or is here legally.

Only five states do not have a proof-of-legal-presence requirement. The other four are border states that are now moving toward enacting such a rule. This leaves Maryland as the only state not moving toward or already having this requirement. Illegal immigrants and terrorists know this.

Last year there were 1,050 out-of-country license applicants processed per month at the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration. Now there are close to 2,000 per week, of which 1,700 are undocumented. The MVA gets 5,000 weekly requests but can process only 2,000. Numbers are rising quickly. Being a target state creates severe security risks.

Maryland is known as an easy target for terrorists because of its proximity to Washington, D.C., and the presence of the U.S. Naval Academy, the National Security Agency, BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, the Harbor Tunnel, the Interstate 95 corridor, defense contractors and power plants.

We have a duty not only to the people of Maryland but to the entire country to offer secure driver's licenses.

While in Annapolis recently, Thomas Kean, the former chairman of the 9-11 Commission, said that "Terrorists loyal to Osama bin Laden appear to be setting up training camps in northwestern Pakistan and they will hit us hard." He went on to say, "The next time, the blows are likely to be harder than they were in 2001, and terrorists may use nuclear weapons."

A new report on our MVA from the Maryland Office of Legislative Audits says:

"Adequate procedures and controls over driver's licensing transactions need to be established to ensure that only proper licenses are issued. Required documentation, such as proof of identity, was not obtained for licenses issued and daily supervisory reviews of licensing transactions were not always performed."

The office "identified 16 individuals who were issued licenses even though the related Social Security numbers were associated with deceased individuals." Since 2000, there has been a 700 percent increase in identity theft, and one-third of these cases start with obtaining a driver's license.

Maryland is cognizant of the effect base expansion will have on our infrastructure, yet there doesn't seem to be any concern for the 600,000-plus illegals we have received or for the larger number to come.

Illegals burden Maryland schools. Parents are upset that their child's learning is marginalized as teachers must deal with language difficulties and other problems.

People in communities along Forest Drive and elsewhere tell me they are upset with problems caused by the many unauthorized boarding houses. Many of these have 20 to 40 illegal immigrants in them.

Others across the state are upset that emergency rooms are overcrowded at all hours. Some emergency hospitals are close to closing. One hospital, Prince George's Hospital Center, will now receive $50 million per year from your taxes to help keep it afloat.

There has been a rise in infectious diseases. Tuberculosis, malaria, plague, polio, dengue, hepatitis A to E, and Chagas' disease cases are on the rise in illegal immigrant target states.

In the 40 years prior to 2002, there were only 900 cases of leprosy in the United States. In the following three years, there were 9,000.

The spring 2008 issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons reported, "the increasing number of illegals coming into the United States is forcing the closing of hospitals (82 in California), spreading previously vanquished diseases and threatening to destroy America's prized health system."

Foreigners with diseases or in need of operations can head here illegally. They are openly received and get treatment at the expense of taxpayers and hospitals, since by law hospitals must treat everyone.

The Proof of Legal Presence Act has 58 co-sponsors. A hearing is scheduled before the House Judiciary Committee on March 19.

A watered-down two-tier version of the bill will not assure security or address the problem of the very large influx of illegal immigrants. Gov. Martin O'Malley has said he is waiting to see if the change in the occupant of the White House in January eliminates the requirement for the states to have secure driver's licenses. Such waiting would be irresponsible.

Passage of this bill would put us on an even playing field with the other states and enhance the rule of law, our security, our schools, our hospitals and our health. And it would be right for Maryland.

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The writer, an Arnold resident, is a state delegate representing District 30.

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