Oregon legislation

Oregon lawmakers are considering a bill that would rewrite the ballot title for the November referendum on short-term drivers’ licenses for illegal immigrants.

The current ballot title, drafted by the state Department of Justice, reads: “Provides Oregon resident ‘driver card’ without requiring proof of legal presence in the United States.” That title is currently being reviewed by the Oregon Supreme Court.

Under an amendment to House Bill 4054 introduced and adopted this morning, the reference to “proof of legal presence” would be dropped from the title. The new title would read: “Establishes limited purpose, duration driver card for individuals who prove Oregon residency, meet driving requirements.” The reference to holders of these licenses not needing “proof of legal presence” would appear once in the ballot measure’s summary below the title.

Proponents of the change say the current ballot title doesn’t reflect the intent of the bill passed by the Legislature last year, before opponents collected enough signatures to refer the matter to voters in November.

That bill, Senate Bill 833, grants four-year “driver cards” to illegal immigrants who can provide proof of identity and of at least one year of Oregon residency, and pass a driving test.

Rep. Jessica Vega-Pederson, a Portland Democrat, said this morning that she believes Oregon voters “deserve to weigh in (on the issue) based on accurate information.”

The new proposed title “reflects both the content and the intent” of SB 833, she said.

Rep. Vic Gilliam, a Silverton Republican, bluntly said he does “not respect the ballot title” drafted by the Department of Justice, adding that the “work appears ... to be rather sloppy.”

Changing the title isn’t intended “to confuse or defuse” the controversial issue, Gilliam said. But, he added, “most voters are going to get their ballot in the mail and they need clear, precise, and easy to understand messages on ballot measures (and) on referendums.”

“This is an odd step but it is well within our purview,” he added.

But Rep. Vicki Berger, a Salem Republican, said she believed the proposed change is “inappropriate” and “basically circumvents a (title drafting) process that is long-standing.”

“In this case it appears the Legislature is unhappy with what the attorney general does and feels that it needs to re-do the job that was done,” she said.

The amended bill was approved 6-3 in the House Rules Committee this morning, with three Republicans opposing it. The bill now heads to the House floor. Read more about Oregon lawmakers skirmish over ballot measure on drivers licenses for illegal immigrants

SALEM --

....Lawmakers propose to change the ballot title to "Establishes limited purpose, duration driver card for individuals who prove Oregon residency, meet driving requirements."

The title would emphasize residency requirements and remove the reference to "legal presence" in the current version of the title: "Provides Oregon resident 'driver card' without requiring proof of legal presence in the United States."

...The bill would also rewrite the summary of the measure and the effects of a yes or no vote.

..."In my view, using the 'proof of legal presence' phrase in some ways is appropriate because it is in the bill a couple of times, but to use it in the ballot title is a terribly gross misapplication of that term," he said.

Rep. Vicki Berger, R-Salem, voted against advancing the bill to the floor and said it was inappropriate for the legislative branch to step in to rewrite a ballot title because it was "unhappy" with what Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum wrote.

...."I have some real issues about the various branches of government staying within their work and purview."

  Read more about Driver card referendum: House panel advances bill to rewrite ballot title

SALEM -- The Oregon Legislature could rewrite the title of a contentious measure on the November ballot asking voters whether to grant driver cards to residents who can’t prove they’re in the state legally.

Legislative leaders will likely decide in the next week or so whether to take that step, said Rep. Jessica Vega Pederson, D-Portland, and other sources....

Three groups have challenged the ballot title and other parts of the measure before the Oregon Supreme Court, but legislators may try to step in before their 35-day session ends. Opponents say the Legislature shouldn’t interfere...

Cynthia Kendoll, president of Oregonians For Immigration Reform, which gathered signatures to send the issue to voters, accused lawmakers of overstepping.

“Just when it looks like we might be successful with this, these legislators are kind of pulling a desperate move to see if they can’t rewrite the rules of the game,” she said. “I don’t think the people who wrote and passed the law should be the people writing the ballot title.”...

  Read more about Driver card referendum: Oregon Legislature could rewrite ballot title

David Olen Cross tracks and reports on illegal alien crimes in Oregon.  He is on the Lars Larson show weekly - usually on Thursday afternoons about 2:45pm with the criminal alien of the week report.

David also tracks the prison and jail populations and prepares detailed reports for those interested in such statistics.  Legislators, law enforcement officers and many others have thanked David for his continued efforts to track and report the often forgotten or overlooked crimes perpetrated by those in our country illegally.

It is important to remember that for nearly every criminal alien in the Oregon prison system, there is at least one victim. This report can't contain the pain, heartache and loss that many have felt at the hands of an illegal alien criminal.

Thank you David for your continued work on this most serious problem.  David can be contacted at: http://docfnc.wordpress.com/

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According to the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) Inmate Population Profile dated January 1, 2014 DOC indicated there were 14,664 prisoners incarcerated in DOC’s 14 prisons (See attachment).

Not included in DOC’s January 1st Inmate Population Profile was DOC data indicating there were 1,165 foreign nationals (criminal aliens) incarcerated in its prison system (See attachment).

All 1,165 criminal aliens incarcerated on January 1st by DOC had United States (U.S.) Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), detainers. The U.S. DHS–ICE is responsible for indentifying whether a DOC inmate is a criminal alien or a domestic inmate. If an inmate is identified as being a criminal alien, at U.S. DHS–ICE’s request, the DOC places an “ICE detainer” on the inmate that directs DOC officials to transfer custody to ICE following completion of the inmate’s state sanction.

Criminal aliens made up approximately 7.94% of the DOC January 1st prison population (See table).
 

Source: Research and Evaluation DOC Unit-ICE inmates lists 01 JANUARY 08rtf – 01 JANUARY 14.rtf and Inmate Population Profile 01 JANUARY 08– 01 JANUARY 14.

Comparing DOC criminal alien incarceration numbers from January 1, 2008 (1,027 criminal aliens) and January 1, 2014 (1,165 criminal aliens), the DOC prison system incarcerated 138 criminal aliens more than it did on January 1, 2008, a 13.44% increase (See table).

  Read more about By the numbers - crime statistics

The rate of Oregon drivers who are unlicensed and uninsured remains largely unchanged since a 2008 law tightened identification requirements to obtain driver's licenses, a state report shows.

The Oregon Department of Transportation report comes months before voters in November will decide whether to grant driving privileges to Oregonians who can't prove their legal presence. The Legislature last year approved offering four-year driver cards, but opponents successfully referred the issue to voters....

It found that the rate of unlicensed, uninsured drivers declined by 0.14 percent between July 2007 and July 2013.
 

Learn more about the referendum campaign to overturn the new law giving driver cards to illegal aliens at the Protect Oregon Driver Licenses website. Read more about Oregon's unlicensed, uninsured driving rates almost unchanged since 2008 law tightening identification requirements