Bill Allowing Driving Permits For Illegal Immigrants On Hold

A bill allowing illegal immigrants a chance to get a driver's permit is moving forward, but there are problems. It's still intact at the General Assembly, but its future is uncertain.

A majority voting in the House Finance Committee on Tuesday rejected a proposed amendment that would have deleted the provision related to issuing a one-year "restricted" permit.

But the committee didn't vote on the whole bill, which also contains tougher penalties for people selling bogus driver's licenses and identification cards. No date was set to reconsider the measure, which passed another committee back in April.

Bill sponsor Rep. Harry Warren of Salisbury says the restricted permit is better than motorists driving with neither genuine identification nor insurance, which the bill requires. Critics argue the permits would give government legitimacy to people in the state unlawfully.