Group Coming Out Against HB 1313

There is a group of people (Sec. of State and friends) who are coming out against HB 1313. Please call the Governor and tell him to sign this important bill. One of the pieces of this legislation would allow people to get an ID using their Department of Corrections identification card in conjunction with a birth certificate or social security card. The barriers to housing, employment and services are huge just because of a lack of an identification card and the difficulty in obtaining one.

If Gov. Ritter truly wants to reduce recidivism in Colorado then he has to take a serious "boots on the ground" look at what people are facing when they are coming back to community.

A bill that would make it easier to get a Colorado driver's license also would encourage illegal immigration and therefore Gov. Bill Ritter should veto it, a coalition of political leaders said Wednesday.

House Bill 1313 would expand the list of documents a person could use to prove residency and citizenship, undercutting efforts to curb illegal immigration, identity theft and terrorist threats, said members of the group, including Secretary of State Mike Coffman and former Democratic Gov. Dick Lamm.

"This bill allows for the use of hospital records, school records, religious records and tax returns to provide proof of identity and lawful presence," Coffman said. "It's a dramatic shift from current practices and could open loopholes to allow individuals to obtain a driver's license or identification card who are not entitled to one."Rocky Mountain News