IDNYC

Last Monday, Mayor Bill de Blasio introduced the city identification program, the largest program of its kind in the country, which will grant government-issued IDs regardless of immigration status. This free card, one of de Blasio's campaign pledges, promises to bring "peace of mind and access to City services that come from having recognized identification. IDNYC benefits every city resident, including the most vulnerable communities—the homeless, youth, the elderly, undocumented immigrants, the formerly incarcerated and others who may have difficulty obtaining other government-issued ID." The mayor said that the ID is just a "'piece of plastic, but it's going to open so many doors for our fellow New Yorkers.'"  

While the ID card is ideal for those who do not have government-issued ID, the administration also hopes to entice those who do by providing numerous benefits, including allowing the IDNYC card to serve as a library card in all five boroughs (anyone who has tried to sign up or has moved frequently around the boroughs knows how beneficial this could be), a one-year free membership to thirty-three of New York City's many leading museums, zoos, concert halls, and botanical gardens, as well as discounts for prescription drugs, gym memberships, and entertainment.

To qualify for the IDNYC card, applicants must be fourteen years or older and a NYC resident. Applicants must first make an appointment (the earliest available appointments for many of the interview sites were several months in advance), fill out an application confirming New York City residency, and then attend an in-person appointment with documents proving identity and NYC residence (for those who are not homeless). There have been many reports of long lines and delays. We tried out the system ourselves and received numerous error messages after several attempts to schedule an appointment, so the site still appears in need of improvement. The mayor denied there were any similarities with IDNYC to the ill-prepared HealthCare.gov rollout. Others have expressed privacy concerns over how the city would release and use the data obtained from those signing up for the program.

One of the first recipients of the IDNYC card was Esther Sanchez, an undocumented immigrant and mother of three from Mexico, who was invited to speak beside the mayor at the news conference, and who said: “This ID card is the key to having a more fulfilling life[.]” 

Bloomberg: "New York to Issue ID Cards for Undocumented Immigrants"

We discussed earlier this year New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's campaign promise of issuing city identity cards to undocumented immigrants, and today the New York City Council approved the measure. With similar programs in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New Haven, Connecticut, these cards will allow the approximately 500,000 undocumented immigrants as well as homeless (and others) in New York City to open bank accounts, obtain leases, and use medical clinics.

Applications for the card can be made with a US or foreign passport, a domestic or foreign driver’s license, birth certificate, or proof of foreign military service, along with proof of city residence. Transgender applicants can identify themselves as they wish, regardless of the listed gender on their other identification.

Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito said before the vote: "'It sends a simple and clear message that we are a city that believes in including everyone...We don’t accept that some people can be left out because of their immigration status, how they identify their gender or whether they may be homeless.'"

And The New York Observer interviews Juan Carlos, an immigrant, who says: “'I understand what it is not to have an ID...This ID would allow me to come out of the shadows more, to lose my fear in front of and dealing with the police, and to really be able to feel like a citizen and a resident of New York.'”
 

City ID Cards

During his campaign, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio had a number of proposals and plans to help the City's immigrants. These included allowing undocumented New Yorkers access to driver's licenses, ending law enforcement cooperation with federal "Detainer Requests" for violations except in the case of violent and serious felonies, cutting red tape for immigrant domestic violence victims obtaining visas, and a City ID card for undocumented immigrants to make it easier to open a bank account and lease an apartment as well as to improve police relations. The mayor is actively pursing this last campaign pledge announcing last week that these cards "would help immigrant residents without legal status participate more fully in civic life." The mayor said moreover that "we will not force any of our residents to live their lives in the shadows.”

The New York Times is hosting a debate about whether a city should grant these types of ID cards. Kica Matos, director of immigrant rights and racial justice at the Center for Community Change, writes that a similar ID card in New Haven, Connecticut "greatly improved the relationship between the immigrant community and the police" and that also brought a "level of dignity. Immigrants now know they truly belong and are a part of New Haven." Steven A. Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies, says the mayor by granting these ID cards is "willfully and explicitly trying to undermine federal immigration law. There is no difference between what the mayor is proposing than if he was helping people cheat on their federal income tax or violate any federal law."