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SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 11

TH LEGISLATURE

- STATE OF NEW MEXICO -

FIRST SESSION

, 2007

INTRODUCED BY

Michael S. Sanchez

FOR THE COURTS, CORRECTIONS AND JUSTICE COMMITTEE

A JOINT MEMORIAL

OPPOSING THE CREATION OF A NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION CARD AND THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE REAL ID ACT OF 2005.

WHEREAS, the state of New Mexico recognizes the

constitution of the United States as our charter of liberty and

the bill of rights as affirming the fundamental and inalienable

rights of Americans, including freedom of privacy and freedom

from unreasonable searches; and

WHEREAS, New Mexico has a diverse population whose

contributions are vital to the state's economy, culture and

civic character; and

WHEREAS, New Mexico is proud of its tradition of

protecting the civil rights and liberties of all its residents,

affirming the fundamental rights of all people and providing

more expansive protections than are granted by the United

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States constitution; and

WHEREAS, the state of New Mexico denounces terrorism in

all its forms and condemns all acts of terrorism by any entity,

wherever the acts occur; and

WHEREAS, any new security measures to protect from

terrorist attacks should be carefully designed to enhance

public safety without infringing on the civil liberties and

rights of citizens; and

WHEREAS, the federal REAL ID Act of 2005, Public Law 109-

13, creates a national identification card by mandating federal

standards for state driver's licenses and identification cards

and requiring states to share their motor vehicle databases;

and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act mandates the documents that

states must require to issue driver's licenses and requires

states to place uniform information on every driver's license

in a standard, machine-readable format; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act prohibits federal agencies and

federally regulated commercial aircraft from accepting a

driver's license or identification card issued by a state that

has not fully complied with the act; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act places a costly unfunded mandate

on states, with initial estimates for New Mexico of more than

thirty-seven million dollars ($37,000,000) over five years and

national estimates of more than eleven billion dollars

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($11,000,000,000) over the next five years; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act requires the creation of a

massive public sector database containing information on every

American that is accessible to all motor vehicle employees and

law enforcement officers nationwide and that can be used to

gather and manage information on citizens, and this is not the

business or responsibility of government; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act enables the creation of

additional massive private sector databases, combining both

transactional information and driver's license information

gained from scanning the machine-readable information contained

on every driver's license; and

WHEREAS, these public and private databases are likely to

contain numerous errors and false information, creating

significant hardship for Americans attempting to verify their

identities in order to fly, open a bank account or perform any

of the numerous functions required to live in the United States

today; and

WHEREAS, the federal trade commission estimates that ten

million Americans are victims of identity theft annually, and,

because identity thieves are increasingly targeting motor

vehicle departments, the REAL ID Act will enable the crime of

identity theft by making the personal information of all

Americans, including date of birth and signature, accessible

from tens of thousands of locations; and

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WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act requires a driver's license to

contain a person's actual home address and makes no exception

for individuals in potential danger, such as undercover law

enforcement or victims of stalking or criminal harassment; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act contains onerous record

verification and retention provisions that place unreasonable

burdens on the motor vehicle division and on third parties

required to verify records; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act will place enormous burdens on

consumers seeking new driver's licenses such as longer lines,

higher costs, increased document requests and a waiting period;

and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act will place state motor vehicle

staff on the front lines of immigration enforcement by forcing

state employees to determine federal citizenship and

immigration status, excessively burdening both foreign-born

applicants and motor vehicle staff; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act passed without sufficient

deliberation by congress and did not receive a hearing by any

congressional committee or a vote solely on its own merits,

despite opposition from more than six hundred organizations;

and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act eliminated a process of

negotiated rulemaking initiated under the Intelligence Reform

and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which had convened

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federal, state and local policymakers, privacy advocates and

industry experts to solve the problem of the misuse of identity

documents; and

WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act provides little security benefit

and leaves identification systems open to insider fraud,

counterfeit documentation and database failures;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE

STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it support the government of the

United States in its campaign against terrorism, while

affirming the commitment of the United States that the campaign

not be waged at the expense of the essential civil rights and

liberties of the citizens of this country; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it is the policy of the state

of New Mexico to oppose any portion of the REAL ID Act that

violates the rights and liberties guaranteed under the

constitutions of New Mexico or the United States, including the

bill of rights; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the New Mexico legislature

enact no legislation nor authorize an appropriation to further

the passage of the REAL ID Act in New Mexico, unless such

appropriation is used exclusively for the purpose of

undertaking a comprehensive analysis of the costs of

implementing the REAL ID Act or to mount a constitutional

challenge to the act by the state attorney general; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the New Mexico legislature

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urge the New Mexico congressional delegation to support

measures to repeal the REAL ID Act; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be

transmitted to President George W. Bush, United States Attorney

General Alberto Gonzales, Governor Bill Richardson, Senator

Pete Domenici, Senator Jeff Bingaman, Representative Tom Udall,

Representative Heather Wilson and Representative Steve Pearce.

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