Craig A. Hayner
County Clerke
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June 24, 2019
President Donald J. Trump
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear President Trump:
| write to you today regarding the ‘Green Light” bill recently signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo
of New York. Respecttully, | ask that you please consider directing the Justice Department to commence
an immediate review of the law and render an opinion regarding whether this legislation, including the
process in which some proven identification safeguards have been removed, should be reviewed in
federal court.
‘As an agent for New York State, | administer three Department of Motor Vehicle offices, which under this
law would be required to issue driver's licenses to “undocuriented! individuals who are unable to prove
their legal immigration status. | am aware that other states offer driver's licenses in a similar fashion,
however, it is my understanding that those states issue licenses that are materially different from the
licenses issued to those who can prove citizenship and to those who can prove they are in the U,
lawfully. This law requires the non-compliant licenses to be “Visually identical” to federally compliant
licenses and simply stamped, “not for federal purposes.” This law also restricts the Department of Motor
Vehicles from disclosing information to federal law enforcement agencies.
Furthermore, as the Clerk of Saratoga County, | have sworn an oath to uphold both the Constitution of the
United States of America and the Constitution of the State of New York. All motor vehicle clerks also
‘swear this same oath of office. It is my opinion, that this law may bring those two oaths into conflict.
Mr. President, | believe this law circumvents federal immigration laws and should be reviewed at the
highest levels of government to determine unilaterally whether this legislation is indeed constitutional. As
you are aware, state law cannot conflict with federal law and where conflicts may exist, federal law
‘supersedes. It is for those reasons that | am writing to you today and respectfully ask that the Justice
Department review this legislation before it goes into effect on December 14, 2019.
| have enclosed, for your reference, State Senate bill S.1747B and State Assembly bill A.3675B, the
legislation signed by Governor Cuomo; my position statement; and two relevant news reports. Thank you
for your time and attention to this matter,
Sincerely,
5
Craig A. Hayner
Saratoga County ClerkCraig A. Hayner
County Clerk
Saratoga County
Clerk's Office
Saratoga County Municipal Center
40 McMaster Street, Ballston Spa, NY 12020
Telephone (518) 885-2213 FAX (518) 884-4726
Shauna M. Sutton
Deputy County Clerk
Charles A. Foehser IT
Deputy County Clerk.
Position Statement on New York State Driver's License Access and Privacy Act
Saratoga County Clerk, Craig A. Hayner
Proudly, the New York State Association of County Clerks (NYSACC) has represented all 62 elected or appointed County
Clerks across the state for over 75 years. Many County Clerks serve as county level commissioners of Motor Vehicles
bureaus and work in partnership with the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles to process DMV transactions
including the issuance of driver licenses.
The ability of states to regulate who drives on their roadways dates back to the Model T with the 1916 Supreme Court
decision regarding Frank J. Kane v. The State of New Jersey, which found the state within its right to issue registration
fees." States were further supported in regulating who drives in 1989 when the Sth Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals,
in the case of Donald S. Miller v. the California Department of Motor Vehicles, ruled that there is no “fundamental right
to drive.”? And again on June 7, 2007, when New York's highest court upheld the NYS OMV's right to require social
security numbers (SSN) from driver license applicants or @ letter of ineligibility from the Social Security Administration, in
the case Cubas v. Martinez?
By statute, the NYS DMV has required driver license applicants to supply their social security numbers since 1995.* OMV
also accepts a letter of ineligibility from the Social Security Administration (SSA) along with Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) documentation from anyone ineligible for a SSN. As stated in the Cubas v Martinez decision, the policy
was not the result of a post-September 11 panic over immigration; the internal document adopting the policy is dated
September 6, 2001. This anti-fraud policy was validated in 2002 with the DMV’s social security verification program
‘uncovering massive amounts of fraud, according to testimony by then-DMV Commissioner Martinez to the NYS
Assembly Transportation Committee on August 19, 2004.°
The current legislation, now signed into law, (35750 & 517478) known as the “Green Light Bil,” disregards history and
case law, attempting to rewrite the law in the interest of a few at the expense of many.
Provides the Option to refuse to Provide a Social Security Number: The law provides the option for Standard License
applicants to refuse to provide a Social Security Number (SSN), allowing criminals to exploit the system. This reverses the
State DMV's law enforcement arm's nearly two decades of work in uncovering and preventing fraud discovered using
Social Security Verification. (A36758, page 3, lines 47-51 & page 4, lines 44-48)
Requires a Visually Identical Design ~ The law requires that licenses issued to those here illegally be “visually identical”
toa federal-purpose license. This appears to be a deliberate attempt to deceive and a violation of the federal REAL ID
Kane v New Jersey, December 4, 1916, available at hitps://vw law. cornell. du/supremecourt/text/242/160
Miller v Reed, May 24, 1999, available at htiosi//caselaw.findlaw.com/s-9th-circui/1054787,tenl
Cubas v Martinez, June 7, 2007, available at https://www law.cornell.edu/nyctap/i07_0082.htm
+ New York State DMV website, DiviV Requirements for Social Security Cards and Social Security Numbers, accessed §/23/19
® DMV Commissioner Martinez Testimony to New York State Assembly Transportation Committee Public Hearing, August 19, 2004,
‘copy on file with authorAct, which requires non-compliant cards to have a unique design or color indicator. While the bill states the
Commissioner may adopt additional regulations to comply with federal law, the use of may rather than shall, provides
the commissioner the option of non-compliance with federal law. (A3675B, page 5, line 34)
Changes Automatic Registration to Selective Service System to Opt-In: The law changes the provision that directs the
DMV to provide information to the Selective Service System (SSS) of young men who are required to be registered with
Selective Service from an automatic registration to an optional registration. According to federal law, with very few
‘exceptions, all males between ages 18 and 25 must register with the SSS. This includes U.S. born and naturalized
citizens, parolees, undocumented immigrants, legal permanent residents, asylum seekers, refugees, and all males with
visas expired more than 30 days. These changes not only create unnecessary red tape for DMV employees, but also
make it easier for people to thwart their lawful duty to register with Selective Service. (A3675B, page 5, lines 9-26)
Requires Notification to Anyone whose Records are Sought ~The law requires the DMV Commissioner to notify within
in three days any person whose records are sought from “any agency that primarily enforces immigration law,”
informing the individual about the request and identifying the agency requesting the records. The bill also requires such
agency or representative to obtain a warrant or court order to access any DMV records. This is a deliberate effort to
impede federal immigration investigations and allow those under investigation to obstruct justice. (A36758, page 2, lines
41-54)
Provides the Option of Implementation before it becomes Law ~ The law back dates to January 1, 2019 the proofs of
identity required to be accepted to include a variety of foreign documents. It also provides for the state to amend or
repeal any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act before it actually becomes law. These
provisions provide the unprecedented ability for the State to implement policy before it becomes law and offers no time
for training for DMV clerks who will be forced to accept documentation they cannot translate or authenticate. Further,
in the midst of REAL ID implementation, which is creating a great influx of customers, longer transaction times, and
frustrated customers in DMV offices throughout the state, this bill would haphazardly thrust even more responsibilities
and a greater customer demand on our overworked DMV clerks without providing them the respect or resources to
ensure they properly implement the law. (A36758, page 3, lines 29-42 & page 6, lines 38-42)
Provides an Opportunity for Voter Fraud — Newly installed Customer Facing Devices in all NYS and County DMV offices
prompt customers to register to vote during any type of license or ID transaction, regardless of the customer's
citizenship status or age. The customer must answer yes or no before their transaction can be competed. The State DMV
has been aware of this computer issue, but to date has yet to address it, passing the issue along to the Board of
Elections to determine eligibility after they receive a list from the DMV of anyone who pressed yes.
Compromises the Oath of Office — The new state law to provide driver licenses to those in this country illegally
circumvents federal law, unjustly putting County Clerks and DMV employees in the compromising position of violating
their oath of office, which is to support and defend the Constitutions of the United States and the State of New York.
Forces DMV employees and County Clerks to be Immigration Authorities ~ The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the
unconditional and absolute power to regulate immigration. Further, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1876 that
immigration regulation was an exclusive federal responsibility. This law shifts that authority to the State of NYS DMV
and forces DMV employees to become experts on identifying 2 multitude of foreign documents from around the world,
placing the sole responsibility on DMV clerks to ensure people are who they claim to be and to ferret out fraudulent
documents. DMV employees would have to do this in addition to the hundreds of motor vehicle transactions the offices
process daily.