An expected onslaught of homeless and disabled people seeking state identification waivers so they could apply for welfare and health benefits never materialized.
Colorado has issued just 111 waivers – electronic certifications to people lacking documents required by the new state laws, which went into effect Aug. 1, that prove legal U.S. residency.
The laws are aimed at preventing illegal immigrants from getting public aid.
The waivers are for those who don’t have the documents to get a driver’s license or state-issued ID card.
At a conference of nonprofit groups that gathered to hear state officials explain the laws’ impacts on the services they provide, revenue director M. Michael Cooke said her department was stunned at the low number.
“It was far less than anyone expected,” Cooke told the groups in Denver on Monday.
The waiver process was established to enable some entitled individuals who lack the required documents to temporarily receive benefits.
Homeless advocates say the low turnout could be a signal of an ineffective system rather than a lack of need.
“The waiver was inserted as a safety valve, but as implemented, it doesn’t really help as we’d like since the ID card is most important,” said John Parvensky, director of the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless.
“For whom it was intended, they can’t establish their identity in the first place,” he said.
The department has rejected more than 500 applicants with invalid immigration documents who sought a driver’s license or state ID card – because the records had expired or applicants required additional security checks, Cooke said.
Many at the conference, sponsored by the Colorado Social Legislation Committee and the Colorado Nonprofit Association, said they resented being turned into “immigration cops” for the state.
House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, a Denver Democrat, said the legislature erred in pushing complex legislation during a special session convened by Gov. Bill Owens.
“We’ve exposed the folly of trying to make legislation in five days,” Romanoff said. “It was not our plan to turn nonprofits into immigration cops. I hope to clarify and fix the issues by the next session.”
Staff writer David Migoya can be reached at 303-54-1506 or dmigoya@denverpost.com.
