Font ResizeSANTA FE - Illegal immigrants would no longer be able to obtain New Mexico driver's licenses under a bill approved Friday night by the House of Representatives.
The vote was 42-28 for a bill carried by a man without a political party.
All 33 Republicans, eight Democrats and independent Andy Nu-ez, who sponsored the bill, voted to tighten the licensing law.
Nu-ez could not get the bill out of committee three weeks ago when Democrats blocked it on a 3-2 vote. He tried the unusual move this week of appealing directly to the full House to hear his proposal, then achieved a stunning victory after 14 hours of debate across two days.
"I thought we'd win it a lot sooner," Nu-ez said afterward.
Democrats in the House complained that Nu-ez used a tactic that had not been tried in 50 years when he sidestepped the legislative committee process and went straight to the House floor with his bill.
Nu-ez, of Hatch, said residents in his district and across the state wanted him to fight for the bill because they oppose the 2003 state law that made it possible for those in the country illegally to get New Mexico driver's licenses.
Rep. Miguel Garcia, D-Albuquerque, was an architect of that bill. Garcia said hard-working, resilient people use the licenses to drive to jobs, earn a salary and pay their taxes.
In an impassioned speech, Garcia spoke of a tailor who has tried for 18 years to become a U.S. citizen. Thwarted by the federal citizenship process, the man nonetheless is
He challenged Nu-ez to explain how he could stand for a law that would hurt people trying to support their families.
Nu-ez, 75, fired back without hesitation.
"I was elected to be a lawmaker, not a lawbreaker," he said. "The state of New Mexico is aiding and abetting illegal immigrants by granting them driver's licenses."
Nu-ez said he was optimistic that the bill would clear the Senate, where Democrats hold a 27-15 advantage. Senate Democrats blocked a bill similar to Nu-ez's in a committee Thursday.
Republican Gov. Susana Martinez campaigned to repeal driver's licenses for illegal immigrants. She calls the law "dangerous," and says it makes a mockery of border and national security.
Martinez said the House vote was a victory for the people.
"Despite numerous procedural schemes to defend the status quo, a broad coalition of Republicans, Democrats and the House's lone independent came together to stand with an overwhelming majority of New Mexicans who want to see the dangerous practice of issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants overturned. I hope the Senate will also listen to the people of New Mexico and give this bill an up-or-down vote," Martinez said.
Others said Nu-ez's bill would drive up auto insurance rates and send illegal immigrants fleeing from accident scenes instead of cooperating with police.
"Today our legislators voted for a bill that would take our state backwards in terms of public safety," said Maria Cristina Lopez, a founding board member of Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a statewide organization for immigrants' rights.
She said police officers like the existing system, as it enables them to know who they are dealing with in traffic stops, and it puts the names of more drivers into police databases to help in traffic investigations.
Nu-ez, though, said the state now spends more than $500,000 a year to try to police a licensing system that creates security risks and administrative headaches.
"People get a New Mexico driver's license to legitimize themselves, then go anywhere they want. A lot of them don't even stay here," he said.
Martinez said the law makes New Mexico a magnet for illegal immigrants.
Eleven states once had laws that allowed those in the country illegally to obtain driver's licenses. Eight have repealed those laws, leaving New Mexico, Utah and Washington as the holdouts.
With fewer states offering licenses to undocumented immigrants, Martinez said, more people in the country illegally head to New Mexico and falsely claim to be state residents when they apply for driver's licenses.
Rep. Ken Martinez, D-Grants, tried to eliminate Nu-ez's bill on Friday with what he called a compromise replacement. Ken Martinez's measure would still have granted licenses to illegal immigrants. House members voted it down 36-34.
Garcia and various other House Democrats said Nu-ez was carrying his bill for the governor. Nu-ez said he crafted his proposal before Susana Martinez's election, and that he believes in what he is doing.
"A lot of immigrants I know went through the hard way to become citizens," Nu-ez said. "They don't like that people here illegally can get a New Mexico driver's license."
Santa Fe Bureau Chief Milan Simonich can be reached at msimonich@tnmnp.com or (505) 820-6898. His blog is at nmcapitolreport.com.
How they voted
The House of Representatives voted 42-28 Friday night for a bill to stop granting driver's licenses to people who do not have proof of immigration status.
•Democrats who voted for the bill: Ray Begaye of Shiprock; Joseph Cervantes of Las Cruces; Dona Irwin of Deming; Sandra Jeff of Crownpoint; Rhonda King of Stanley; Patricia Lundstrom of Gallup; Al Park of Albuquerque; and Debbie Rodella of Espanola.
•All 33 Republicans voted for the bill.
•Also voting for the bill was its sponsor, independent Andy Nu-ez of Hatch.
•Twenty-eight Democrats voted against the bill.
