New Mexico Legislature sends Real ID bill to governor

New Mexico’s Legislature has approved a plan to make New Mexico compliant under the federal REAL ID Act.

The House of Representatives voted 65-1 on Monday to approve a Senate-amended bill.

Republican Gov. Susana Martinez has praised the legislation that would require immigrants in the country illegally to submit fingerprints before getting new “driving authorization cards.” Those fingerprints would be given to the FBI for background checks.

Immigrants in the country illegally who currently have New Mexico driver’s licenses can skip the fingerprinting requirement.

All state residents could apply for REAL ID compliant licenses or just authorization cards. The REAL ID Act requires proof of legal U.S. residency for those who want to use state identification to access certain areas of federal facilities.