Driver cards for Indiana’s undocumented residents: Bloomington council adds to statewide local support
On Wednesday night, Bloomington’s city council chambers were packed so tight that the upstairs balcony had to be opened to fit everyone.
The big crowd was there for two reasons. First, the council’s meeting was the occasion when Bloomington’s human rights commission announced its annual awards. One human rights award went to Beacon, Inc. executive director Forrest Gilmore. The other award was given to the Monroe County Community School’s Corporation equity ambassadors.
The other big draw was a city council resolution in support of future state legislation to allow undocumented immigrants living in the Hoosier state to get a driver’s card—which would make it legal for them to operate a motor vehicle.
The resolution had unanimous support from the city council.
Introducing the resolution was Josefa Madgridal, who is the mayor’s chief of staff. She ticked through the basic points in support of this type of legislation, which has been passed in a dozen and a half other states.
Proponents of this kind of legislation typically frame it as a public safety issue. The idea is that if there’s a legal path to driving, even for undocumented immigrants, that means the government can at least require minimum driving skill levels and insurance.
Madrigal noted that such cards would not give anyone the right to vote. She added: “It will reduce accidents, reduce [insurance] premiums paid by licensed drivers, and promote positive relations with law enforcement by reducing the fear of traffic stops…”
When he commented in support of the resolution, councilmember Jim Sims picked up on the idea of fear. Sims said, “I do believe that the good Lord never instilled fear in us.” He added, “People who live in fear—from police interactions, from difficulty in accessing food, difficulty in accessing employment—we have to fight that.” About fear, Sims said, “That is not a natural human tendency…That is created by external forces.”
Ed Rodriguez, who is with the group La Voz Unida (The United Voice), spoke from the public mic in support of the council’s resolution. He’s working to get other city councils across the state to pass similar resolutions.
Also speaking from the public mic in support of the resolution was state senator Shelli Yoder, who could eventually vote for such state legislation, when the Indiana General Assembly convenes again early next year. Yoder, who is a Democrat, like all of Bloomington’s councilmembers, said the effort to enact driver card legislation is bi-partisan.
Yoder alluded to the fact that bills on the topic have been introduced in previous legislative sessions, including this year. She said, “Each year, we get a little closer.”
In 2022, neither SB 200 nor HB 1195 got a hearing by the committees to which they were assigned. In 2021, both of the bills that were introduced to address the issue of driver’s IDs for undocumented immigrants—HB 1138 and SB 319—also died without a committee hearing.
Earlier this year, SB 248 did get a committee hearing, and got a do-pass recommendation from its committee on a 5–4 vote. But there it died.
During the Feb. 7 senate committee hearing, Republican senator Jim Buck’s opposition was tempered by an indication that SB 248 was an improvement over similar legislation that had been introduced in previous years.
Buck said, “I have constituents that follow the rules, did the right thing. And they’re having their jobs disappear, because somebody else is taking their job that didn’t follow the rules, and didn’t do the right thing.” Buck indicated that in order for him to support the bill, a driver’s card would need to be tied in some way to the person’s pursuit of US citizenship.
Responding to a B Square question after the council’s meeting, Yoder said that she might be willing to support some provision about a commitment to US citizenship, if that is what it takes to get the bill out of the senate and over to the house—but she would need to see the details.
Yoder is more interested in seeing La Voz Unida implement its strategy of winning expressions of support from local leaders across the state, especially in places represented by senators like Buck, who cite the views of their constituents as a reason for opposing the legislation.
Buck’s District 21 in the Indiana state senate covers parts of Howard, Tipton, and Hamilton counties, and includes the city of Kokomo.
At Wednesday’s city council meeting, Rodriguez included Buck’s district as one place where La Voz Unida will be working to get the support of local leaders. He said, “Right now we’re looking at Kokomo, we’re looking at Anderson, Muncie, Frankfort.” He also named Columbus and Washington as other Indiana cities where La Voz Unida will be looking to pick up local legislative support.
