DeSantis' immigration attack plan prohibits valid driver licenses for the undocumented

Editor's note: This story was originally published in July 2023.

Florida’s new immigration law aimed at undocumented residents, isn’t only driving away essential workers in the agriculture, construction and hospitality industries. It’s putting extra scrutiny on visitors in Florida with out-of-state driver licenses.

This month, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles issued a selective list of driver licenses from other states that will no longer be honored in Florida.

There are 19 states that issue a kind of driver license to undocumented residents. These licenses, which are typically called “driver privilege cards,” have language on the card that makes it clear they aren’t valid for federal REAL ID purposes.

For example, the driver privilege card from Delaware includes the words “Driving Privilege Only” and “Not Valid for Identification.”

Rhode Island legislators passed a law last year to institute these driver privilege cards to undocumented state residents who have a valid auto insurance policy, have already filed personal income tax returns in the state, or are dependents of an income-tax filer.

“This is an important issue for our economy, equality, and public safety,” Rhode Island’s Gov. Dan McKee said after signing the bill into law. “By granting every Rhode Islander of driving age the opportunity to safely and legally drive a vehicle, we are allowing them to further their education and career — which in turn benefits the entire state.

“This legislation will make our roads safer, and our economy stronger, and I’m proud to sign it into law.”

Florida’s approach under Gov. Ron DeSantis has been the opposite. Florida’s new immigration law, SB 1718, prohibits undocumented residents from being licensed to drive in the state and forbids county and local governments from issuing them any form of documentation.

It also invalidates the driver privilege cards issued by states such as Rhode Island.

“Someone who is in our country illegally and has violated our laws should not possess a government-issued ID which allows them access to state-funded services and other privileges afforded to lawful residents,” DeSantis said in a statement.

The sponsor of the Rhode Island bill, State Rep. Karen Alzate, is the daughter of undocumented parents who immigrated from Colombia. She said DeSantis is intentionally misleading people.

“He’s spitting out incorrect information, harmful and incorrect information,” Alzate told The Boston Globe. “People who are undocumented don’t qualify for any public assistance. They don’t have legal status. People love to say that, knowing it’s incorrect.”

A telltale sign that this is more about DeSantis’ presidential aspirations than sound public policy can be found on The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles website.

The site includes a new listing for “out-of-state driver classes that are invalid in Florida.”

You’d think it would list all 19 states that issue these driver privilege cards. But the Florida site only lists five small states controlled by Democratic lawmakers. They are Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, and Hawaii.

The bigger Northeastern states — Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey — all offer driver privilege cards to non-residents, but they didn’t make the Florida list, even though they make up a lion's share of Florida's out-of-state domestic visitors.

And neither did Virginia, which is closer to Florida than the five states that were singled out. But maybe that’s because Virginia has a Republican governor and a Republican-controlled state house.

More: DeSantis' own immigrant story in conflict with his opposition to "birthright citizenship"

And while the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles served notice to any undocumented drivers from Hawaii, it completely passed over Utah, a Republican-controlled state that also issues driver licenses to the undocumented.

I seem to remember DeSantis campaigning for president in Utah a few months ago and telling the people there that “Florida is the Utah of the Southeast.” I guess that means Florida can’t put Utah on the naughty list.

The folly of Florida’s ham-handed actions here are manifested in another way too: By the rates of uninsured drivers in the states that were singled out. The advocates of issuing driver privilege cards to the undocumented point out that they cut the numbers of uninsured drivers on the road and thereby benefit everyone.

More: E-Verify system in Florida aimed at scaring off workers in worst jobs. Who will fill in?

Florida ought to be paying attention to that. We’re one of the worst states when it comes to uninsured drivers. About one in five Florida drivers (20.4 percent) lack insurance, according to the Insurance Research Council.

Those states singled out by Florida all do a better job when it comes to limiting the percentages of uninsured drivers: Rhode Island (16.3) Hawaii (9.3), Vermont (8.8), Delaware (8.5), Connecticut (6.3)

If we had a governor who was more interested in solving problems for the common good than picking the scabs of bigotry for his own personal gain we wouldn’t be on high alert looking for people with Hawaiian driver licenses.

Frank Cerabino is a columnist at The Palm Beach Post, a part of the USA TODAY Florida Network.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: DeSantis, Florida immigration law targets undocumented residents