Driver's license law hits auto dealers

[derekkj 0]

Driver's license law hits auto dealers

Unable to register, illegal immigrants return vehicles

By MARY LOU PICKEL

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 07/16/07

Jose Genao sells used cars for a living, but lately he's had to turn away customers from his Smyrna dealership.

Genao used to sell about 15 vehicles a week, mostly Ford F-150 or Silverado pickups to a Mexican clientele. Now he sells only two or three.

Jose Genao, looking over one of the cars at his dealership, says business is suffering because of a new Georgia law that affects illegal immigrants.

Half a dozen customers have returned cars because they can't register them.

"They bring the key and tell me, 'Jose, I'm leaving,' " Genao said.

Genao is feeling the fallout from a new state law, effective July 1, that requires a valid Georgia driver's license or ID card to register a car in Georgia.

The law is cutting deep into traffic for many auto dealers and tag and title services catering to the state's growing immigrant community. Illegal immigrants can't get driver's licenses because to do so, they must prove they're in the country legally.

The law also has the potential to cut into sales taxes and county ad valorem tax revenues, though metro area counties say it's too early to measure that effect.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) said he did not target immigrants.

"Yes, this will impact people who are here illegally, but my biggest focus is public safety," he said.

"If [car dealers and tag services] have built their business on people who are here illegally, I'm sorry, but at some point they had to realize that was not going to continue," Rogers said.

The license plate law closes a window that gave motorists 30 days to get Georgia driver's licenses after moving to the state. In the interim, a driver could register a car with an out-of-state or international license.

Also effective July 1 was a separate, 2006 law requiring increased verification of legal status in Georgia for a variety of other purposes, including to work in some jobs or qualify for welfare.

While no one knows how many illegal immigrants are in Georgia, a government estimate put the number around 470,000. Nationally, most illegal immigrants are from Mexico, followed by El Salvador, Guatemala, India and China, according to a 2005 Department of Homeland Security report.

Genao, 34, has a green card and has lived in the United States eight years. If business doesn't pick up, he might return to his native Dominican Republic to tend to a car dealership there.

"If they don't do something, a lot of businesses are going to close," he said.

Tony Brooks, an insurance agent who caters to the Hispanic community in Marietta, said business for his tag and title service has dropped off about 80 percent since the law went into effect.

"It's definitely slowing things down, that's for sure," Brooks said.

He's had to turn away 30 to 40 people wanting tags in the last two weeks because they don't have Georgia driver's licenses.

His main business is auto insurance, which hasn't suffered, but he's worried immigrant customers won't buy insurance either if they can't register their cars.

Cobb County's tag offices have seen a "significant decrease" in the volume of applications submitted by tag and title services in the last two weeks, said Stewart Manley, manager of Cobb County's tag offices.

The county has also turned away about 40 people per day, Manley said, out of an average 1,900 customers served daily. Some are people who have moved from other states and don't have Georgia driver's licenses yet, Manley said. "They're complaining mildly," he said.

Tax collectors in Cobb, Gwinnett and DeKalb said it is too early to tell how the new license plate law would affect tax collection.

"You really won't see the effect economically for six months," said Brent Bennett, director of vehicle registrations for DeKalb County.

Loopholes exist even with the new law.

An illegal immigrant can still mail in a tag renewal or go online and avoid the need to show a driver's license.

That's what Raul Hernandez plans to do. He is an illegal immigrant from Mexico who came here legally but overstayed his visa and so has a Georgia driver's license. He doesn't have to worry about the tag problem, but his friends do.

"People have asked me to get tags for them in my name. Right now I said 'No, it's not worth the risk. If they get tickets, they'll be sent to me,' " he said in Spanish.

"Right now people are scared, but it will settle down and go back to normal," Hernandez predicted.

Isaias Zavala, 33, an illegal immigrant from Mexico who works construction, said he has no license but his wife does, so he registers their car through her. Still, he worries because he has to drive to work.

"This all seems very bad to me," he said in Spanish of the new law.

Perimeter Insurance Agency used to process 25 tags per week in one Cobb County location. Since July 1, they've done only three renewals, said Jose Mendez, part owner of the business.

His co-owner, Rick Craddock, said he appreciates his immigrant customers.

"We love these people," Craddock said.

But he acknowledges there is a problem with illegal immigration. "We have to secure the border and slow the influx," he said. "The solution is not to kick out all the people who are already here."

www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2007/07/15/tags_0716.html <http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2007/07/15/tags_0716.html>

[isleta521 5]

"If [car dealers and tag services] have built their business on people who are here illegally, I'm sorry, but at some point they had to realize that was not going to continue," Rogers said.

Sounds like a step in the right direction

[GaryC 7]

In Illinois you have to prove you have insurance before you can register a car. It would have the same effect as I would think it would be hard for an illegal to get insurance. I am not in favor of anything that makes it easy for an illegal to do anything here. If they don't like it then they know where the border is.

[mawilson 2,133]

I have a solution: don't take them back.

You bought it, it's yours

[ARodrigues 0]

I have a solution: don't take them back.

You bought it, it's yours

I don't think most insurance are ever aware of legal status. In fact, my husband is covered on our policy with his Brazilian driver's license.

oops! I didn't mean to quote anyone!

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Driver's license law hits auto dealers

Unable to register, illegal immigrants return vehicles

By MARY LOU PICKEL

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 07/16/07

Jose Genao sells used cars for a living, but lately he's had to turn away customers from his Smyrna dealership.

Genao used to sell about 15 vehicles a week, mostly Ford F-150 or Silverado pickups to a Mexican clientele. Now he sells only two or three.

Jose Genao, looking over one of the cars at his dealership, says business is suffering because of a new Georgia law that affects illegal immigrants.

Half a dozen customers have returned cars because they can't register them.

"They bring the key and tell me, 'Jose, I'm leaving,' " Genao said.

Genao is feeling the fallout from a new state law, effective July 1, that requires a valid Georgia driver's license or ID card to register a car in Georgia....

That is a very chopfrack non-solution to illegal immigration. It also has a negative effect on legal migrants who may need a car.

A good example would be if someone moved from NYC (where they did not own a car--due to no place to park it, good public transport, ...) to Atlanta where a car is practically a necessity (there are considerable portions of Fulton and Dekalb where MARTA doesn't go). If this person buys a car within 2 days of arrival, does this law mean that it will be impossible to register till the licence is changed over?

Or a student/tempworker just come in from Canada who needs to buy/register a clunker for transport? It is extremely difficult (if not impossible) to get Canadian registration on a GA-bought car.

[isleta521 5]

Driver's license law hits auto dealers

Unable to register, illegal immigrants return vehicles

By MARY LOU PICKEL

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 07/16/07

Jose Genao sells used cars for a living, but lately he's had to turn away customers from his Smyrna dealership.

Genao used to sell about 15 vehicles a week, mostly Ford F-150 or Silverado pickups to a Mexican clientele. Now he sells only two or three.

Jose Genao, looking over one of the cars at his dealership, says business is suffering because of a new Georgia law that affects illegal immigrants.

Half a dozen customers have returned cars because they can't register them.

"They bring the key and tell me, 'Jose, I'm leaving,' " Genao said.

Genao is feeling the fallout from a new state law, effective July 1, that requires a valid Georgia driver's license or ID card to register a car in Georgia....

That is a very chopfrack non-solution to illegal immigration. It also has a negative effect on legal migrants who may need a car.

A good example would be if someone moved from NYC (where they did not own a car--due to no place to park it, good public transport, ...) to Atlanta where a car is practically a necessity (there are considerable portions of Fulton and Dekalb where MARTA doesn't go). If this person buys a car within 2 days of arrival, does this law mean that it will be impossible to register till the licence is changed over?

Or a student/tempworker just come in from Canada who needs to buy/register a clunker for transport? It is extremely difficult (if not impossible) to get Canadian registration on a GA-bought car.

Seems like it would be a good idea to get your new DL or ID card first, seems like its easy enough to do if you can prove you are in US legally according to MVD Georgia:

http://www.dds.ga.gov/drivers/DLdata.aspx?...71757&ty=dl

[Dr_LHA 3]

Its not just illegals that this affects.

In Pennsylvania they have a law that says you need to have an I-94 valid for more than 12 months to get a DL, trouble is a lot of people come here on 1 year visas. They can get insurance, and drive on a international license for that year, but they can't buy a car because a PA license is needed to register it.

I know someone affected by this, she got around it by having her (US) friend officially own the car.

[Ban Hammer 13,098]

"This all seems very bad to me," he said in Spanish of the new law.

pssst, it's supposed to!

[isleta521 5]

Its not just illegals that this affects.

In Pennsylvania they have a law that says you need to have an I-94 valid for more than 12 months to get a DL, trouble is a lot of people come here on 1 year visas. They can get insurance, and drive on a international license for that year, but they can't buy a car because a PA license is needed to register it.

I know someone affected by this, she got around it by having her (US) friend officially own the car.

A lot of times their focus is so narrow that they (regulation and law makers) don't think it through enough to cover some of us that are trying to do things correctly. It is a shame.

Edited July 19, 2007 by isleta521

[Marc and Olga 0]

Arizona has passed some laws that require proving legal status in the USA...Olga had to prove that she was here legally to continue her English class, I was worried about that since we were still waiting on her AoS and only had the notice of action that it was being processed...it was enough

[homesick_american 1]

Oh well...tough titties.

[hmm1 0]

Oh well...tough titties.

I am rather happy about this law...hopefully it will spread to other areas...

[Lansbury 19]

In Oregon you have to have a social security number and an Oregon drivers licence to be able to buy a car. The dealer had to put the sale of my Jeep in my wife's name as I didn't have my drivers licence then was still using my UK one.

I assume it has a lot to do with no sales tax in Oregon so stops people from out of state getting their cars without paying sales tax in their home State. Of course when I got my licence Oregon also got extra money for the fee to change the registration into my name.

[Pinocchio Liberal 268]

Is Jose legal or illegal?

Edited July 19, 2007 by CarolsMarc