Researchers look at town IDs

Community members who want Carrboro to provide municipal identification cards to undocumented residents are looking into the types of identification that local service providers require.

For those without valid Social Security cards or driver's licenses access to many services is limited.

Starting this week UNC senior Drew Felts will be interviewing business members of the Comité de Asuntos Latinos de Orange" a Latino rights group comprising several area businesses and social service organizations.

The study is composed of a series of questions that attempts to get an idea of what identification information local companies need to provide services for residents.

""CALDO had interest in trying to see what other kinds of programs out there are available to try to provide undocumented Hispanic immigrants with some form of documentation"" Felts said.

UNC professor Darcy Lear, a Comité member who is working with Felts, said the group is looking at a municipal ID program already in place elsewhere as part of its research.

We're looking at the New Haven" Conn." municipal ID program to have a model of a municipality that isn't hostile toward the hardworking immigrants in the community.""

New Haven made municipal IDs available in 2007 to local residents" including undocumented immigrants so they can access services.

The town offers identification cards with a debit feature that also give residents who don't qualify for driver's licenses access to public libraries parks and recreational sites.

 Jacqueline James a New Haven alderman said one major goal of the program is to make illegal residents feel safe using community resources" such as police and banking services.

""As a city" we are in support of addressing immigration issues and laws and actually trying to be a part of something positive and affecting some level of change" James said.

Victor Melendez, executive director of El Centro Latino, said any type of identification card for undocumented immigrants would help. He also said a municipal ID would be limited in its scope.

It's a very limited type of ID and doesn't go beyond those boundaries"" he said. It's very limited to the residents of that municipality.""

Both Lear and Felts stressed that the study into the ID requirements is in the initial stages.

""We just want to find out if there is a need for a municipal ID (locally)" Lear said.

If people feel like ‘I can't go get treatment for my tuberculosis because the sheriff is going to access my records"' you have major risks on your hands.""

Felts will start interviewing businesses this week" but any potential policy is far down the road.

Questions range from the acceptance of certain IDs to whether the organization has noticed problems resulting from a lack of certain IDs.

Any action from Carrboro could be a long time coming" Felts said.

Carrboro Alderman John Herrera said Carrboro likely would welcome ""anything that facilitates access of resources."" But he said the town would have to look at the costs and benefits of a program that would benefit ""a few people that already have access to our services.""

And although the potential impact of a move to municipal IDs is unclear"" Melendez said the limited move could help residents with services like opening bank accounts.

""Any identification will definitely help in a positive way because it gives people ways to receive services and the different entities of the city.""



Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.