Pictures of signing of Georgia bills SB 350 and SB 421, May 22, 2008
After months of work, and in the case Senate Bill 350, more than a year of work, Governor Sonny Perdue signed two very important bills into Georgia law. I was proud to have been invited by the sponsors of Senate Bills 350 and 421 to attend the signing ceremonies for both bills in the Georgia Governor's office on May 22, 2008.
Including the ACLU, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO), these bills earned all the right enemies. After fighting the bills in the legislature with a swarm of well-funded lobbyists, the above groups - with corporate money - were part of a large coalition looking for a better life by urging the governor to veto the legislation.
The bills would never have become Georgia law without the tireless work done by the Dustin Inman Society supporters. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for the e-mails, phone calls and trips to the Georgia Capitol to impress upon the various committee members the importance of passing this legislation.
We should all be grateful to the bill's authors, cosponsors and to Governor Perdue for signing the bills into law
As Americans, we are proving the obvious: We are America and Enforcement Works.
(The text of both bills can be read here: SB 350 and SB 421.) dak
Senate Bill 350, authored by Senator John Wiles (R-Marietta) will punish Georgia residents – including illegal aliens – who are driving without ever having obtained a Georgia driver’s license. Previously, unlicensed driving usually resulted in a fine which is regarded as little more than speed-bump for the untrained and unlicensed illegal drivers. SB 350 allows for fingerprinting violators, fines of up to $1000.00 and jail time for the first offense - with a felony charge if convicted more than three times in five years.
SB 350 will serve as a deterrent to illegal presence in Georgia here and will have save lives on Georgia roads. Maybe it would have saved Cobb County Sheriff’s Deputy Loren Lilly who was killed when he was run off the road by an unlicensed illegal alien driver in December 2006.
SB 421 makes it a felony for the second violation of the crime of knowingly manufacturing, selling, distributing or possessing false identification documents. Even for illegal aliens who have stolen American citizen’s identities on their way to stealing the American Dream. Thank you Georgia state Senator Chip Pearson (R-Dawsonville).