Licenses for immigrants law meets Charlie Baker veto, Legislature set to override
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Licenses for immigrants law meets Charlie Baker veto, Legislature set to override
Matthew Medsger - Yesterday 5:56 PM
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https://www.alipac.us/image/png;base...AASUVORK5CYII=The House and Senate’s plan to give driver’s licenses to those without the ability to demonstrate their lawful presence in the state will have to go forward without the governor’s blessing, after their bill was sent back to them unsigned Friday.
“I cannot sign this legislation because it requires the Registry of Motor Vehicles to issue state credentials to people without the ability to verify their identity. The Registry does not have the expertise or ability to verify the validity of many types of documents from other countries,” Gov. Charlie Baker said in his veto letter.
Baker refused to sign House Bill 4805, “An Act relative to work and family mobility,” which would allow someone to use identification issued by their home country to establish their identity for the purpose of getting a Massachusetts driver’s license.
Baker said that because the registry is not equipped to verify those documents, a Massachusetts license will lose its validity as a form of identification.
“Consequently, a standard Massachusetts driver’s license will no longer confirm that a person is who they say they are,” he wrote. “This bill also fails to include any measures to distinguish standard Massachusetts driver’s licenses issued to persons who demonstrate lawful presence from those who do not.”
Proponents of the law, which was sent to Baker after leaving a joint legislative committee Thursday, say it will finally allow those without legal status to go about their normal lives without fear of having to break the law in order to get to work or the grocery store.
Opponents say the law doesn’t do enough to prevent those without legal access to vote from being registered to do so, which occurs immediately in Massachusetts upon issuance of a license.
The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition spoke out Friday against the governor’s veto.
“We are deeply disappointed that Governor Baker has vetoed the Work and Family Mobility Act,” Executive Director Elizabeth Sweet said in an emailed statement.
“The policy would not only make our communities safer, but benefit our economy and bolster trust between law enforcement and immigrant communities. We hope that the legislature will waste no time in overriding the Governor’s veto,” she said.
Baker’s veto will not prevent it from becoming law, as it cleared both chambers of the legislature with wide enough margins to clear the two-thirds vote threshold for an override.
The override process will begin in the House in June, according to a spokesperson for Speaker Ronald Mariano’s office, before proceeding to the Senate.
The legislative session will end on July 31, with lawmakers already scheduled to finish the fiscal 2023 budget and consider tax cuts and sports betting proposals.
Licenses for immigrants law meets Charlie Baker veto, Legislature set to override (msn.com)
