Elm City Resident Card
| Elm City Resident Card | |
|---|---|
| Date first issued | July 24, 2007 |
| Issued by | New Haven, Connecticut |
| Type of document | municipal identification card |
| Purpose | Proof of identity and residency debit card with a capacity of $150 library card means for paying parking meters |
| Eligibility requirements | Two different proofs of New Haven residency |
| Expiration | Losing residency in the city limits |
The Elm City Resident Card is an identification (ID) card used in New Haven, Connecticut in the United States. The card was originally designed to protect the estimated 10,000 to 15,000 undocumented immigrants in New Haven from being robbed or assaulted. All city residents can receive the card, which serves as a form of identification, debit card with a capacity of $150, library card, and a way to pay for parking meters. The cards were first issued in July 2007, and were the first municipal identification cards issued in the United States. The card costs $5 for children or $10 for adults.
Illegal immigration, especially from Mexico and other Latin American countries, has been a controversial political issue in the US for many years.
Undocumented immigrants in New Haven were often targets of robbery, and sometimes murder because they were less likely to go to police due to their immigration status. It is also harder for undocumented immigrants to get bank accounts, causing some to carry around larger sums of cash.
New Haven has historically had a favorable policy toward immigrants. In December 2006, the New Haven police instituted a policy of not asking crime victims or witnesses about their immigration status, unless they were suspected of being involved in a crime - the first policy of its kind in Connecticut.
Municipal ID cards were first proposed in 2005, as the result of a study conducted by Unidad Latina en Accion (ULA) a New Haven-based grassroots social justice organization. ULA is a leading member of the Connecticut Immigrant Rights Alliance, a statewide coalition including immigrant, faith, labor, civil rights and human service organizations. Junta for Progressive Action, an advocacy group, and Yale Law School students. The proposal received a positive reaction, but was not adopted. Then, in December 2006, the mayor of New Haven, John DeStefano, Jr., announced that he was reviving the plan. The city then redrafted plans, and in May 2007 unveiled the new Elm City Resident Card that has multiple uses, so that it would be useful to all residents of New Haven.
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