Council bill would create ID cards for the undocumented
Philadelphia would offer municipal ID cards that could be used by undocumented immigrants to access city services, file police reports, or potentially open bank accounts if legislation introduced Thursday to City Council is approved.
Philadelphia would offer municipal ID cards that could be used by undocumented immigrants to access city services, file police reports, or potentially open bank accounts if legislation introduced Thursday to City Council is approved.
The cards, proposed by Councilwoman Maria Quiñones Sánchez, could also benefit a wider audience. In other cities, the cards come with perks ranging from gym discounts to museum memberships.
The legislation has the backing of Mayor Kenney, who cosponsored unsuccessful municipal ID legislation in 2013 while a member of Council.
"There is no question that something must be done to help bring Philadelphians out of the shadows," Kenney said in a statement.
Municipal IDs, though offered in many major cities, are controversial. Supporters say they help undocumented immigrants more fully participate in society; critics worry that they are a stealth path to legal status.
Sánchez's legislation quickly received some pushback Thursday.
"This type of program could lead to illegal residents receiving government benefits that they haven't paid for," said Don Adams, cofounder of the conservative Independence Hall Foundation, "and that it could further lead to their ability to register to vote."
The bill introduced Thursday would allow any city resident to receive the ID by giving proof of residency and identity. The city would be prohibited from sharing or soliciting applicants' confidential information.
Many details have yet to be sorted out, making the launch of a program likely many months off even with Council approval.
Sánchez's and Kenney's offices have not said what the cards would cost, how the program would be administered, or what the price tag to the city would be.
Also Thursday, Council President Darrell L. Clarke introduced a resolution supporting an overhaul of Philadelphia's tax structure that is at odds with another proposal being advanced by a coalition of business, labor, and civic organizations. He did so the day before that coalition, joined by Kenney, is to hold a news conference to discuss the effort in City Hall.
The coalition is asking the legislature to change the Pennsylvania Constitution to let the city tax commercial real estate and residential property at different rates. The city would then be required to use the money raised from an increase in commercial real estate taxes to cut wage and business taxes.
Clarke supports a two-rate system but does not want the city to be required to use the added revenue to lower other taxes. He stressed his stance in a memo sent to his colleagues Wednesday and obtained by a reporter.
"I want to be very clear: This radical proposal would irrevocably tie the city's hands in an ill-advised manner," Clarke wrote.
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