Memo | DC Driver’s License and Identification Card Laws and Regulations: Current Issues and Proposed Changes
Currently, DC ID laws are too restrictive — with strict eligibility requirements for Limited Purpose Credentials leaving hundreds of residents ineligible for any form of ID, and an ever-shrinking list of acceptable proof of residency documents resulting in many housing insecure individuals unable to prove residency. In addition, District residents applying for LPCs must contend with one of the most limited lists of acceptable proof of identity documents out of the 21 states that allow similar IDs; this, coupled with the six-month residency requirement, leave countless immigrants unable to access the ID that was created to benefit them.
In this memo, we propose multiple reforms to District laws and regulations that will allow and expand access to IDs and driver’s licenses for some of the most vulnerable communities in DC.
This memo was a collaboration between Migrant Solidarity Mutual Aid, DC Volunteer Lawyers Project, and Bread for the City. It was prepared by Madhvi Venkatraman, Michaela Lovejoy, and Tracy Davis. For questions, please contact the authors at madhvi.v@gmail.com, mlovejoy@dcvlp.org, and tdavis@breadforthecity.org.