Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

AUSTIN - A border bill strongly supported by the Texas Border Coalition is in danger of not passing because it is stuck in, of all places, the House Border and International Affairs Committee.

SB 2027, authored by Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, authorizes the Department of Public Safety to work with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to develop an enhanced driver's license pilot project on the U.S.-Mexico border. The bill sailed through the Senate.

The House sponsor is Rep. Ryan Guillen, D-Rio Grande City. Guillen said he is baffled as to why, with time running out this session, the bill has not moved out of the House committee.

“I am hopeful we will work through the concerns. It is a very good bill,” said Guillen, who is not on the House panel.

Guillen said he was pushing members of the Border and International Affairs Committee to get behind the bill. He said TBC Chairman and Eagle Pass Mayor Chad Foster would be doing the same.

Under the pilot project, new licenses would include proof of citizenship and other information that can easily be scanned at border ports of entry. The pilot project is modeled on pilot program legislation recently enacted in the state of Washington.

Last month, TBC Vice-Chairman Mike Allen sent out an advisory urging support for Shapleigh’s bill and the Rio Grande Valley Partnership passed a resolution in favor of the bill.

“I commend Senator Shapleigh for his proactive efforts to create mechanisms that facilitate business and goodwill, rather than some federal initiatives that wedge barricades against them,” Rio Grande Valley Partnership President and CEO Bill Summers told the Guardian.

In the pilot program being introduced in the state of Washington the new licenses will include radio frequency ID chips and other advanced security features. They are thought to be not only less vulnerable to forgery but also, at about $40, less expensive than a $97 passport.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff gave his endorsement of the Washington pilot project at a news conference last month.

“I'm quite sure other states that want to use the same technology and the same approach will be welcome to do so,” Chertoff said. “The whole idea here is giving a series of alternatives, as long as they meet the same basic standards.”

Guillen said that if Chertoff pushes ahead with a plan to require every U.S. citizen returning from Mexico to have a passport, the pilot project would become even more important.

“We are going to have a big crisis with the new passport rule. Families are going to have to pay hundreds of dollars for passports. It is going to have a great economic impact on the border,” Guillen said. “This bill will help alleviate this.”

Rep. Tracy King, D-Batesville, chairman of the Border and International Affairs Committee, said the issues raised by SB 2027 would need to be addressed in the event that new passport rules are introduced.

“That would be a burden to those of us who cross the border a lot. It would be very helpful if it (SB 2027) were in place,” King said.

Asked why SB 2027 had not moved out of his committee, King said some of his colleagues had concerns.

“When the bill was heard, there were no advocates there for it. In the committee there was hardly anyone who signed up for it, except for Veronica de Lafuente, representing Hidalgo County,” King said.

“There were questions about the cost - it had a very large fiscal note, about $20 million. Also, there were some questions about how effective it was in the other states that were using it.”

King said his committee may not meet again this session because there were no new bills to consider.

“We have no more bills scheduled at this time but we could certainly pass it out in a formal meeting if the members want to do so,” King said. “I would encourage the people that are advocates for the bill to work the members, if they want to have a vote on it.”