In a June 1 editorial urging Gov. Bill Ritter (D) to veto House Bill 1313, The Denver Post continued a trend among Colorado media of misrepresenting the bill's identification requirements to obtain a Colorado driver's license. According to the Post, HB 1313 “would allow an applicant to present ... a driver's license from another state as proof of legal status.” The Post added, “Trouble is, many states have looser documentation standards for obtaining state IDs and driver's licenses.”

However, as Colorado Media Matters has noted, the bill states that the Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles could only accept as a stand-alone document a “driver's license or identification document, other than a military identification document, issued by the United States or any state that requires proof of lawful presence in the United States to obtain such driver's license or an identification document that is not expired.” [emphasis added] Additionally, the bill states that any driver's license issued by a state “that does not require proof of lawful presence in the United States to obtain such document” must be accompanied by one of several acceptable “secondary” forms of identification, such as a signed Social Security card or military ID card.

As the Post noted, HB 1313 was created to address “all manner of problems for a relatively small but vulnerable segment of the population -- the homeless, disabled and senior citizens" after lawmakers passed immigration legislation in 2006 that required “applicants for public aid to prove legal residency.” The Rocky Mountain News reported in a June 1 online article that Ritter vetoed HB 1313 that day:

Ritter said it is up to the administration and not the legislature to fix problems at the Division of Motor Vehicles, which last year adopted such stringent rules that legitimate Coloradans were unable to get driver's licenses or photo ID cards.

Ritter said the state on Thursday formally adopted new rules that expand the types of documents the state will accept in order to issue a driver's license but don't compromise security.

From the editorial “Legislation is wrong way to deal with IDs” in the June 1 edition of The Denver Post:

It would be ironic if Colorado lawmakers' efforts last year to crack down on illegal immigrants resulted in a loosening of standards to get a Colorado driver's license.

In a roundabout way, that's what will happen if Gov. Bill Ritter signs state House Bill 1313, which is on his desk now.

It's a convoluted policy tale that began with the passage of a bill in last summer's special session requiring applicants for public aid to prove legal residency.

The measure caused all manner of problems for a relatively small but vulnerable segment of the population -- the homeless, disabled and senior citizens.

Well-meaning advocates for some of these people urged the passage of HB 1313, which would loosen requirements for getting a driver's license. It would allow an applicant to present a U.S. passport, which could be expired or issued under a nickname, or a driver's license from another state as proof of legal status.

Trouble is, many states have looser documentation standards for obtaining state IDs and driver's licenses. Once the word got out -- and it would -- Colorado could become a gateway for people seeking easy access to the legitimacy afforded by a driver's license.

Colorado Media Matters also has noted that the language of HB 1313 specifies that the Department of Revenue, which oversees the Division of Motor Vehicles, must adopt rules consistent with those established by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for verifying an applicant's lawful residence in the United States:

The department shall promulgate rules establishing the requirements to prove that a license applicant is lawfully present in the United States. Such rules shall conform to standards established by the United States Department of Homeland Security for proving lawful presence.