OLYMPIA – All first-time motorists in Washington will now have to prove state residency to get a driver’s license, learner’s permit or state ID card.
Under new policies put into force this week, it will no longer be good enough to show a passport or other ID that doesn’t show actual residency.
“We are strengthening our checking process,” Brad Benfield, spokesman for the Department of Licensing, told a Seattle newspaper.
The change was prompted by cases of some drivers, particularly commercial drivers in the country illegally, coming to Washington to get their licenses because the state hasn’t always required proof of citizenship. They then would take their licenses back to their home states and exchange them for their state’s license.
Seven states don’t require proof of legal residence.
In March, an illegal immigrant from Ecuador was charged with conspiracy to commit fraud for helping more than 300 other Ecuadoreans get Washington driver’s licenses.
Immigration officials arrested Luis Palaguachi-Guaman on Feb. 18 as he tried to board a New York-bound flight from Seattle. Authorities said he was carrying nearly $17,000, a payment journal and 24 Licensing Department envelopes with licenses.
Authorities allege that Ecuadoreans from New York state would fly to Seattle, and Palaguachi-Guaman would give them with a Washington address to use on their license application. After the applicant passed the written and driving tests, Palaguachi-Guaman would forward the licenses to his clients for $200 to $350.
Under the policy change, the state will accept a person’s recent home utility bill, rental agreement, home-mortgage information or voter registration cards.
Last year, more than 248,000 people applied for first-time driver’s licenses, 86,000 got instruction permits and 103,000 obtained ID cards. In addition, 14,000 out-of-state drivers got licenses in Washington.
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