MN Senate conservatives, liberals unite to pass legislation against federal Real ID Act Law
05/14/2008
by T.W. Budig
ECM Capitol reporter
May 13, 2008
Senate conservatives and liberals united Tuesday (May 13) to pass legislation prohibiting the state from taking any action to implement federal Real ID Act law.
"There is no security more dangerous than false security,” said Sen. Ray Vandeveer, R-Forest Lake, who supported the bill.
The federal law has drawn heat from some lawmakers this session as inviting an invasion of Minnesotans’ privacy and as an expensive, unfunded mandate coming out of Washington.
Day, like Gov. Tim Pawlenty, voiced opposition to legislation prohibition the state from implementing the requirements of the act. But the Senate, on a strong vote, passed such legislation nevertheless.
The act requires certain data to be included on the state driver’s license and failure to comply could have Minnesotans not being allowed to board planes or enter federal buildings, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has argued in the past.
The governor supports the act.
But Sen. Leo Foley, DFL-Coon Rapids, a former state trooper, argued it would have state law enforcement diverting attention from more important tasks.
“I guess we all forgot 9/11 real fast,” said Sen. Dick Day, R-Owatonna, who opposed the bill.
But several local conservative Republicans, including Vandeveer and Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, argued at length against the provision.
Sen. Mike Jungbauer, R-East Bethel, argued that the apparent penalties the federal government would exact on states failing to comply with the act constituted the worst kind of coercion.
Sen. Mike Jungbauer, R-East Bethel, spoke on the Senate floor on Tuesday (May 13) against the state participating in the federal Real ID Act. Jungbuaer argued that adding information to driver's licenses, as the act requires, is an open door to electric snooping as a person with an electric device could pull the data off a person's driver's license on the sly as they walked by.
The bill passed the Senate on a 50-16 vote.
Local senators Johnson, Koch, Pariseau, Robling, and Wergin voted against the bill.