The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 10 to 1 to allow anyone, including undocumented immigrants, to apply for and receive municipal identification cards. The bill, sponsored by Supervisor Tom Ammiano, passed the first vote on Nov. 14 and will be reviewed by the board once more before being sent to the mayor.
This development is one outcome of the immigrant rights movements that hit the streets in the millions last year and defeated the racist Sensenbrenner bill. If approved, the bill would allow undocumented workers to open bank accounts, library accounts and apply for other much-needed city services.
San Francisco—already an official sanctuary city for the undocumented—would be the largest city to pass such a bill. The City of New Haven, Conn., passed a similar bill in June. It has issued 4,800 cards since then.
