{"id":123424,"date":"2016-02-03T22:14:32","date_gmt":"2016-02-04T05:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=123424"},"modified":"2016-02-04T09:25:22","modified_gmt":"2016-02-04T16:25:22","slug":"drivers-license-deal-may-be-near-fingerprints-still-a-sticking-point","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2016\/02\/drivers-license-deal-may-be-near-fingerprints-still-a-sticking-point\/","title":{"rendered":"Driver’s license deal may be near; fingerprints still a sticking point"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Immigrants<\/a>

Luis S\u00e1nchez Saturno \/ The New Mexican<\/p>

Immigrants hold up their driver’s licenses during Tuesday’s legislative debate over making New Mexico’s licenses compliant with the federal REAL ID Act. A key sticking point remaining is whether people applying for a so-called driving privilege cards — for those who don’t prove citizenship or legal status — will have to be fingerprinted.<\/p><\/div>\n

Senate Democrats seem to have given in to Gov. Susana Martinez’s request that lawmakers pass a bill that only allows New Mexico’s immigrants without legal status to get a driving authorization card, instead of a license, in a compromise to make the state compliant with the federal Real ID Act.<\/p>\n

For the past five years, Martinez has pushed lawmakers to pass a bill that would revoke driver’s licenses held by people who don’t prove citizenship or legal status. She said\u00a0the move also would make the state compliant with the Real ID Act, a 2005 federal law that regulates identification used for federal purposes. Martinez and GOP lawmakers’ efforts have failed repeatedly, and this session Martinez is backing a measure that would allow those who don’t prove legal status\u00a0to drive legally in the state after obtaining a temporary driving privilege card.<\/p>\n