A number of groups and individuals have sent a letter to Michigan Governor Rick Snyder asking him to support immigrants and address Secretary of State Ruth Johnson’s new directive they believe would harm young immigrants. 

The letter was signed by the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee of Michigan, American-Arab Chamber of Commerce, Arab-American Civil Rights League, Association of Chinese Americans, Consortium of Hispanic Agencies, Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation, Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, NAACP – Detroit Branch, State Representative for Michigan’s 12th House District, Rashida Tlaib, United Auto Workers and Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano. 

In the letter the groups and individuals express their concern regarding Secretary of State Ruth Johnson’s recent determination and directive to her staff, to deny Michigan driver’s licenses and state identification cards to immigrant youths, who have been authorized to live and work in the United States under the federal government’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (“DACA”) program.

“As you know, the strength of this nation and this great state was built on the hard work and industry of immigrants. This issue hits very close to home with me because my father and grandparents, too, were immigrants, and I proudly serve a constituency with a large immigrant population who live, work, and attend schools in this County,” Ficano said. 

The concern arises out of Johnson’s October 2012 directive to her staff and branch offices that the Secretary of State “cannot issue driver’s licenses or ID cards to individuals presenting Employment Authorization Cards (I-766) that return a SAVE System Response of “DACA – Employment Authorized.” 

Johnson may have issued the directive based on the legally erroneous conclusion that because a DACA designation “does not provide legal status” to the DACA beneficiary, the DACA beneficiary is, therefore, “unlawfully present” within the United States. 

Ficano says Johnson’s directive may in fact, be unlawful, violating several Michigan statutes and perhaps federal laws.

He says as a result of Johnson’s directive, Wayne County and its taxpayers have suffered and will suffer increased economic harm, including the burden of increased law enforcement costs, occasioned by the presence of unlicensed drivers within the County, who statistically have been shown to contribute disproportionately to the amount of automobile accidents on the roadway.

He added that there could also be increased law enforcement costs associated with ascertaining the identity of persons living, or otherwise within Wayne County, who are without driver’s licenses or state identification.

There is also expected to be increased medical costs associated with treating the uninsured and underinsured within Wayne County that cannot access medical insurance or other healthcare programs due to the lack of state identification, which is generally required for access to these programs.

“The unintended but inevitable consequences of Secretary Johnson’s directive is increased uninsured motorists on our roads, a dangerous and unnecessary result for Michigan. Considering the average DACA beneficiary would receive a two-year deferral on any removal action, which is subject to renewal for two additional years, she is increasing the risk of automobile accidents, fatalities and uninsured motorists’ expenses for potentially the next several years,” Ficano said. He says additionally, the Secretary’s directive will result in inevitable decreased economic development and economic activity from college and university students within Wayne County who are DACA beneficiaries. Ficano says this does not include the obvious loss of revenue which would be generated by allowing licensure, and the fee associated therewith, for the almost 15,000 potential DACA beneficiaries in Michigan. He added that there is the incalculable but certain cost due to decreased economic development and impaired tax revenues from businesses within Wayne County, with employees or prospective employees that have been and will be affected by Ms. Johnson’s directive.