Shifting His Stance on Licenses, Spitzer Is Expected to Back Federal ID
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ALBANY, Oct. 26 — In a major shift, the Spitzer administration is expected to embrace federal legislation that will make driver’s licenses more secure in coming years, a move that had been thought to be at odds with its own plan to allow illegal immigrants to apply for licenses.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer is delaying a planned trip to Portugal to make the announcement at a press conference in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, and is expected to appear with officials from the Department of Homeland Security.

Last month, the administration proposed allowing illegal immigrants to apply for the same New York driver’s license that citizens and legal immigrants can obtain, without noting anywhere on the license that the applicants were not able to show they were legal residents.

But under the new plan, the administration is expected to support two tiers of license, a person briefed on the announcement said. One would be a new federally recognized, highly secure license known as a “Real ID,â€