Community Leaders Discuss Failed Driver’s License Legislation For Undocumented Residents
By Monica Carrillo
The Community Library, The Alliance of Idaho, and The Hunger Coalition held a panel discussion last week, confronting the myths and facts about immigrants in Blaine County and Idaho.
Luis Campos, legal director for The Alliance, provided a short presentation debunking several common myths about immigrants and immigration before joining others for the panel.
This included Steve England, Hailey police chief, Rick Naerebout, Idaho Dairyman’s Association’s chief executive officer, Becky Lopez, executive director of The Alliance of Idaho, and Naomi Spence, co-executive director of The Hunger Coalition, where they eventually shared their thoughts on “Manejando Sin Miedo” (Driving Without Fear) – a campaign that supported legislation for driver’s licenses for the undocumented community.
“It’s something we’ve all worked hard to try to get on the floor, and it’s failed twice now,” Spence said. “So we will try to keep working on that but God bless Idaho.”
“Manejando Sin Miedo” was started in 2021 by Poder of Idaho, a nonprofit organization that mobilizes and organizes the Latino and immigrant community for cultural and policy change.
According to their website, the campaign supported the Driver’s Authorization Card, but the bill did not pass. They tried again in 2023 by supporting the Restricted Driver’s License Bill and were able to collect over 10,000 signatures across Idaho.
The legislation was sent to the Senate floor “without recommendation” — the farthest the bill has gotten in the state of Idaho.
“I shouldn’t say we, I’m not speaking for all law enforcement. Excuse me on this, because there’s a lot of law enforcement don’t want to see this – but I, as a law enforcement official in the state, Idaho and in our community, would like to see that we get a driver’s permit for all persons that are able to and of age in Idaho,” England said.
“One thing I see in our job is it would give us a chance to identify that person, fill out a correct citation on them, and actually feel comfortable of who we’re dealing with.”
Campos also said the potential for increased driver’s license infractions within the immigrant community comes from the lack of legislation allowing them to obtain licenses. However, he clarified this doesn’t necessarily mean they increase crime in a community.
However, with the political makeup right now, Naerebout said it might not be possible to pass a similar bill in the near future.
“We’re just not going to have the legislative makeup to try and move that bill forward and take it back in front of the legislature. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the political reality of the state we’re in right now,” Naerebout said.
Estefania Mondragon, executive director of Poder of Idaho, confirmed that the “Manejando Sin Miedo” campaign is currently on hiatus and will be postponed until further notice.