ID card plan for illegal immigrants approved
L.A. (BDCi) – Critics are saying that Los Angeles is showing support for illegal immigrants after a City Council committee approved a city photo-identification card plan on Tuesday (16).
Supporters point to the initiative’s possibility of reducing crime as a positive point, because fewer people would be carrying cash on them if they had the ID cards to use for banking.
The card would be available for a fee of between $10 and $20, with a low monthly fee for optional debit service.
According to Mayor Villaraigosa’s office, poor and elderly legal residents who do not possess a driver’s license or other forms of identification stand to benefit a lot from the program.
Applicants can expect a “strict” list of criteria upon trying to obtain a card, though the exact details have yet to be announced.
Other cities like San Francisco and Oakland already issue ID cards to anyone who can prove residency, no matter their immigration status.
But some say L.A. should instead look to Arizona for the example they have set with their anti-immigration legislation.
By: Diego Díaz Source: LA Times Photo: ABC News 17 October 2012
9:05 a.m. P.D.T.