New Jersey lawmakers are proposing legislation that would allow illegal aliens to obtain driver’s licenses, with some arguing that doing so would make driving in the state safer.
The proposed bill would allow illegal aliens to obtain a “standard license,” meaning the driver’s licenses would not be the same as the driver’s licenses that are in keeping with federal guidelines under the REAL ID Act.
The bill would not only allow people in the U.S. illegally to obtain a legal government document, but it would also mandate the state’s driving exams to be offered in three other languages other than English.
Supporters of the bill claim the legislation would make roads safer and be a boon to New Jersey’s economy.
“We can’t ignore the reality that undocumented immigrants are on the roads now, going to work, driving their children to school and doing the routine activities that all families do,” said state Sen. Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex), who sponsored the bill.
But not every lawmaker is on board with the bill.
New Jersey Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick (R-Union) said he had concerns about allowing illegal aliens to have driver’s licenses and questioned why the legislation mandated driving exams in other languages when road signs are written in English.
“Well, I would hope that if you pass a test and you get a driver’s license, you should be able to read the signs. That should be a requirement for anyone with a license. Not that complicated a question,” Bramnick told New Jersey 101.5.
“Languages, I would agree with that, but if the signs are English you actually have to read what the signs say, not what the manual says,” Bramnick added.
If the bill passes, New Jersey will join several other states — including California, Utah, Washington, Hawaii, Delaware, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, and Vermont — that already allow illegal aliens to obtain driver’s licenses.