 | |
| |
TechnologyDaily Mobile
Mexican IDs Now Legitimate In Indiana
by Chloe Albanesius
Indiana on Thursday officially endorsed the use of the "matricula consular," an identification card issued by the Mexican government, as a legal form of ID in the state.
Gov. Frank O'Bannon supported use of the cards in a letter to the state's Mexican consul, Sergio Aguilera. "Recognition of the matricula card as valid identification will help Mexican nationals conduct business, live their lives and feel welcomed in our state," O'Bannon wrote.
The card already is accepted at the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles if presented with another form of ID. The announcement will expand acceptance to state agencies and financial institutions.
It will be "more unifying so that all agencies know that the policy exists," said Mary Dieter, O'Bannon's press secretary. "Banks can feel more comfortable opening accounts with Mexican nationals."
Aguilera pointed to the economic benefits of allowing the card. "[Mexicans are] a community that has a buying power of $500 billion a year," he said.
"There are many sectors of the U.S. economy that function thanks to this labor force that comes from other countries," Aguilera said. "[Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan] Greenspan ... has declared many times before committees of Congress that the only way the U.S. economy will continue to grow is by not closing the doors to immigration but [by] opening them wider."
Critics of using the Mexican cards as a form of identification in the United States said they are easily duplicated and could be used by terrorists. Aguilera said the market for fake U.S. driver's licenses is just as popular and added that many of those do not include the same 13 identifying features as the matricula. "We go through a very detailed process of issuing the cards," he said.
Dieter agreed. "We believe that some kind of ID is preferable to no ID," she said.
The safety features on the cards that Aguilera mentioned include: consecutive numbers that can be verified; the names of the cardholders written over pictures that can only be seen by a special decoder card; and encrypted bands with identifying information on the backs of cards.
Mexican nationals can obtain cards via the Indianapolis consulate office, though many obtain them in Mexico. Critics argue that it is difficult to know if Mexican officials' ID checks are as thorough as those required in the United States.
"The government of Mexico has no centralized database to coordinate the issuance of consular ID cards," FBI Office of Intelligence official Steve McCraw testified last week before the House Judiciary Committee. "This allows multiple cards to be issued under the same name, the same address or with the same photograph."
Indiana Republican Sen. Richard Lugar disagrees. "Cards that simplify identification of immigrants and facilitate their contact with our institutions are a benefit to public safety, not a liability," he said in a statement last month.
The Cost Of Illegal Telemarketing In Kansas
Kansas collected about $60,000 in civil penalties and investigative fees during April, May and June from companies that violated the state's law against telemarketing to state residents who have signed a "do not call" registry, Attorney General Phil Kline announced last week.
"The number of reported violations continues to fall as compliance continues to rise," Kline said in a release. "In November, this office received nearly 1,500 complaints. That number for June was 120." Kansas currently has 503,000 residents registered on its do-not-call list.
Four Kansas companies were among the 13 that charged with violations, with the Kansas City-based AmeriPure Water paying the heftiest fine of $10,000 for 14 violations.
Texas Nabs Third Potential Child Molester
The Texas Internet Bureau continued its online sting against potential child molesters, nabbing a third suspect on Tuesday as he traveled to San Marcos to meet whom he thought was a 13-year-old girl.
Bill James Duenas allegedly conversed with the "girl" in an Internet chat room a month ago. He recently tried to find her using her screen name in a chat room, resulting in the arranged San Marcos meeting. The girl, however, was an undercover police officer trained in online teen talk.
Duenas was charged with attempted aggravated sexual assault of a child. His bond is $150,000.
Ridge Names State Officials As Advisers
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge last week announced several state appointments to the senior advisory committee of the department's Advisory Council. The subcommittee is charged with counseling the department on improving security.
The committee now includes: Utah Gov. Michael Leavitt as chairman; Washington, D.C., Mayor Anthony Williams as vice chair; and Oklahoma state Sen. James Dunlap, Florida Secretary of State Glenda Hood and Connecticut Gov. John Rowland as members.
You've Just Won The Lottery -- Not!
A scam Web site of the Massachusetts State Lottery site that was used to solicit personal information from players was taken offline this week, Computerworld reports.
The scam involved e-mails and text messages to people that said the recipients had won $30,000. They were directed to a Web site that was nearly identical to that of the state lottery and then asked to input personal information and pay a $100 processing fee.
The people behind the scam are likely based in Nigeria, lottery spokeswoman Amy Morris said. Some 200 people have contacted the Lottery Commission regarding the scam, and some disclosed their personal information first, Morris said.
One Call That Washingtonians Should Take
Washington state residents could be owed thousands of dollars from the state's Revenue Department, a fact that few citizens know. The Seattle Times reports that the state has $300 million in unclaimed funds, all listed on a Web site.
Refunds from the department have ranged from $30 to more than $100,000.
The department has staffers who specialize in finding out how much people are owed and contacting them, but private businesses also do such work -- and often use unsolicited commercial e-mail to advertise. "They've been hitting people's in-boxes pretty heavily," said Patti Wilson, operations manager for the state's unclaimed-property section.
Attempts to contact people about the money they are owed are not easy in today's spam- and telemarketing-wary society, Wilson said. When contacting state residents, she often immediately says, "I'm not a telemarketer; I am with the Washington State Department of Revenue" to avoid hang-ups on the telephone.
Boston Schools Get Millions From Gates Foundation
Boston public schools were awarded $13.6 million by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for teacher training, school development and community internships, The Boston Globe reports. The funds will target 7,500 students in 19 city high schools and will assist state schools Superintendent Thomas Payzant's goal of overhauling those institutions.
The award was announced Tuesday at Dorchester Education Complex, one of the city's most troubled schools. Next year, the school will be split into three institutions focusing on business, public service and technology.
NEW FEATURE
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
