NewsMine — security — bigbrother — national-id — Viewing Item

Governors complain of new drivers license costs { July 18 2005 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)    http://wireservice.wired.com/wired/story.asp?section=Breaking&storyId=1064804&tw=wn_wire_story http://wireservice.wired.com/wired/story.asp?section=Breaking&storyId=1064804&tw=wn_wire_story Governors: Drivers License Costs to Soar Associated Press Monday, July 18, 2005 2:34 a.m. ET By ROBERT TANNER AP National Writer DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- In the name of homeland security, motorists are going to see costs skyrocket for driver's licenses and motor vehicle offices forced to operate like local branches of the FBI, the nation's governors warn. The new federal law squeezed this spring into an $82 billion spending bill had Republican and Democrat governors fuming at their summer meeting here, and vowing to bring their complaints to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff at a Monday meeting. "It's outrageous to pass this off on the states," said Republican Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, incoming chairman of the National Governors Association. "You're essentially asking the front-line clerks at the DMV to become an INS agent and a law enforcement agent." The law that passed in June goes beyond an earlier law that sought to standardize state driver's licenses, requiring that states verify license applicants are American citizens or legal residents. "This is going to drive the cost of driver's licenses for ordinary folks through the roof," said Democrat Tom Vilsack of Iowa. "I think it's going to drive people crazy." The law would demand skills of motor vehicle office clerks far beyond what is currently expected, governors said. Democrat Bill Richardson of New Mexico said the law, known as the REAL ID Act, unconstitutionally infringed upon state laws such as his, where illegal immigrants have been able to get licenses. New Mexico's approach made roads safer since licensed immigrants could get insured, helped the state keep track of immigrants, and also helped integrate immigrants into the community, he said. "It's a shortsighted, ill-conceived initiative," Richardson said. "We'll challenge it constitutionally." On Sunday, governors said they'd agreed on a months-long bipartisan proposal to improve the federal-state Medicaid program. They said it should help slow the program's soaring costs, and let states experiment with more effective ways to deliver health care. If accepted in Washington, the governors' plan would allow states to demand co-payments from poor, disabled and women with children, and add tools to curb seniors from giving relatives their assets so they could get Medicaid-funded long-term care. Sen. Charles Grassley, the Iowa Republican who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, said the governors' work was crucial to winning agreement in Congress on any Medicaid changes. President Bush wants to trim the growth in the program by $10 billion over five years. The governors proposal "is really key to getting something done. We will not get a bipartisan agreement in Congress without a bipartisan agreement from the governors," Grassley said after meeting privately with governors. Governors also took aim at a piece of Bush's new Medicare drug prescription policy, with more than a dozen weighing a legal fight to challenge part of the new law. Their concerns centered on a relatively small portion of the policy that would affect the elderly who are poor enough to qualify for Medicaid and old enough to qualify for Medicare. Governors have long argued that the federal government should pay the costs of that group, which are significantly higher per person than for the rest of the Medicaid population. The new Medicare law means the federal government nominally takes over responsibility for that group, but requires states to continue to pay the overwhelming majority of the bill for their drugs by sending cash to Washington. Many governors said the complex and cumbersome federal formula means they would pay more money than before. Texas and New Hampshire have put aside the money they would send to the federal government to cover those drug benefits until the dispute is resolved. Republican Rick Perry of Texas wrote a letter to fellow governors arguing they should work together to change the federal policy. ___ On the Net: National Governors Association: http://www.nga.org Copyright © 2005 Associated Press.

Bill prompts new national ID card fears { February 9 2005 } Blair wins national ID card vote Britain id cards a necessity British id cards wwii { December 7 1950 } Brits might join US with world id Bush national ID planned blocked and delayed { February 25 2007 } Congress recommends national id Congress to federalize drivers licenses { May 3 2005 } Global id Gop immigration bill wants national id card Governors complain of new drivers license costs { July 18 2005 } Hr4633 Idcard scalia Japan id National id card quietly added to house legislation National id New vic terrorism id card { October 23 2003 } Privacy issues Queen speech pave way for id cards { November 7 2003 } Files Listed: 19

Correction/submissions

CIA FOIA Archive

National Security Archives

This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information, go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purpose of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.