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Community Corner

Rep. Scribner Calls Democrats' Political Ploy "Deceitful, Reckless"

In a last-minute, deceitful maneuver, Democrat leaders sneakily tampered with a budget bill in order to change the effective date of controversial legislation granting driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants, State Rep. David Scribner (R-107) said today. The policy change – which would have moved up the effective date from July 1, 2015 to July 1, 2013 – was inserted into a 500-page, omnibus budget implementer bill carrying $750 million in bonding, and surfaced only hours before midnight adjournment of the 2013 session. “This is one of the most reckless, irresponsible moves I’ve seen in my decade and a half long tenure in the legislature,” said Rep. Scribner, Ranking Member of the Transportation Committee. “There are several key reasons why implementation was designed for 2015. Those two additional years are desperately needed to explore the unanswered questions accompanying this policy; including how it will be funded. The DMV has stated they need time to secure a source of the $1.3 million in still-unappropriated funds needed to implement the policy. Starting this program in three short weeks is logistically impossible and would handicap the agency’s day-to-day tasks.” Rep. Scribner added “Whoever arranged the scheme was determined to implement this controversial policy on their own terms. We have a deliberative legislative process for a reason, and this political slight-of-hand undermines the eight-hours-long debate the House had on this measure and disenfranchises the whole process. It boggles my mind to think that if we had not caught that one digit change in this expansive package of legislation, we would have voted on the bill without knowing the far-reaching consequences.” The change threatened to paralyze legislative action as Republican legislators promised to filibuster the measure until the midnight adjournment deadline if the date was not reversed. Reluctantly, legislative Democrats agreed. Rep. Scribner is Ranking Member and longest serving leader of the Transportation Committee and Transportation Bonding Subcommittee.

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