Contact:
Kelly Chesney, Department of State
(517) 373-2520
Shannon Aiken, Michigan State Police
(517) 336-6364
Jonathan Tukel, First Assistant U.S. Attorney, Eastern District
(313) 226-9749
Greg Palmore, U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement
(313) 215-7657

Adults who apply for their first driver's license or personal identification card will soon be required to provide documentation showing that they reside in Michigan, Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land announced today.

The updated Department of State procedure offers a new line of defense against identity fraud. State and federal authorities requested the policy change to help prevent individuals from falsely obtaining state licenses and ID cards. Law enforcement brought to the department's attention incidents of individuals trying to obtain driver's licenses by fraudulently claiming Michigan residency. A thorough department review of its policies and procedures was already under way before the contact from law enforcement.

"This policy change strikes a necessary balance between ensuring homeland security and preserving our customer-service focus," Land said. "We are committed to working with all affected customers so that their applications are processed without delay. We also must preserve the integrity of state-issued documents. The department is continually looking for ways in which it can contribute to the overall safety of our state and nation. This common-sense safeguard is one more step in that effort."

State law has long required driver's license and personal identification card applicants to be Michigan residents. The new documentation process merely ensures that applicants are complying with that mandate.

"These are important changes," stated United States Attorney Craig S. Morford of the Eastern District of Michigan. "A driver's license enables an individual to travel, open bank accounts, obtain government-issued identification in other states and commit other crimes. The changes implemented by Secretary Land plug an important loophole which could have been exploited. Accordingly, I applaud her prompt attention to these concerns."

"The policy change implemented by Secretary of State Land is an important step in addressing a real vulnerability to our homeland security efforts and will have an impact beyond the borders of Michigan," said Brian M. Moskowitz, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Detroit. "The Secretary of State has made it much more difficult for organized criminal groups and individuals from both here and around the country to abuse our system."

Effective Dec. 13, all applicants for an original Michigan driver's license or personal ID card who are 18 or older must provide documentation of residency. This does not apply to document renewals, or to residents under 18 because of the sufficient documentation requirements of Michigan's Graduated Driver Licensing program.

In addition to meeting all other requirements, applicants must now provide at least one document with their name and Michigan residence address. Post office boxes cannot be used in lieu of a residence address.

Examples of acceptable documents include utility bills, bank statements, insurance policies, valid student IDs from a Michigan school, paychecks or stubs, lease agreements, and government documents. Cell phone bills are not acceptable.

Michigan currently requires applicants to provide at least three documents to prove identity. These standards are consistent with - and in many cases, more stringent than - those in other states. Most other states already require either proof of state residency or legal presence in the United States. A 1995 state attorney general's opinion currently prohibits Michigan from making legal presence in the United States a condition for driver's license applicants.

Michigan issues about 240,000 orginal driver's licenses and 135,000 ID cards annually.

"The tightened requirements for receiving a state identification will help law enforcement combat identity theft, which is one of the fastest growing crimes in the state and the nation,"

said Col. Tadarial J. Sturdivant, director of the Michigan State Police. "This policy will also help ensure the safety of Michigan citizens by making it more difficult for a criminal to obtain multiple identifications."

Information about this new policy is on the department's Web site at www.Michigan.gov/sos.