TALLAHASSEE, FL – On Wednesday, the Florida House Local Administration, Federal Affairs & Special Districts Subcommittee voted to advance House Bill 1451 (HB 1451), which would prohibit counties and municipalities from accepting certain community identification cards or documents as a form of identification.
The ACLU of Florida opposes this bill and its companion bill, Senate Bill 1174 (SB 1174).
Silvana Caldera, senior policy strategist at the ACLU of Florida, responded with the following:
“Community IDs can be life-changing for Floridians and their families and benefit the entire community. Obtaining and/or replacing a government ID or Driver’s License can be difficult for many residents, such as elderly and disabled individuals, victims of domestic violence, immigrants, and the homeless and housing-insecure populations.
“This is why communities across Florida have implemented Community ID programs to meet the needs of residents and allow them to do everyday activities, such as pick up their kids from school, pick up medications, and more confidently interact with law enforcement.
“This targeted attack by the legislature does not make our communities any safer and will impact vulnerable people across the state. Floridians are able to live their lives more safely because of Community IDs. Preempting local governments from running successful programs that benefit their communities, as HB 1451 does, is an overreach by the state government and is harmful to our state.”
