I agree with Helen’s comment about HB 3206, which would allow illegal immigrants a chance to get a permit to drive on Texas roads and have their vehicles insured.  This bill also states that the driving permit will be strictly for driving and it will not allow anyone the right to board planes, vote or have other rights and privileges that belong only to U.S. citizens. The person entitled to this permit will be fingerprinted, have a background check and pay a fee of about $150.00. I think that Texas’s roads would be definitely safer because the undocumented immigrants who will get driving permits would have to know the traffic laws, understand our roads signs in English and be forced to have insurance at all times. I have heard many stories about accidents where one of the people involved in the crash runs off because he or she is afraid of being caught without legal documentation and insurance.I believe this bill would prevent those kinds of situations.

 On the other hand, our police officers would have the fingerprints of this group of drivers and they would have the results of their background checks which will facilitate their job if they need to find or arrest any of these individuals. This bill doesn’t represent a change in their immigration status at all; it will only allow illegal immigrants the right to buy car’s insurance. This will also benefit the State in terms of finances after all. As Helen mentioned, “there are more than 1.6 million immigrants in the state of Texas and many of them drive”. If even a few of them decide to sign up for this, it will be worth it.