New driver’s license may replace passports at border

If Sen. Tom Saxhaug has his way all you’ll need at the Minnesota-Ontario border crossing is a special driver’s license or ID card. Saxhaug, a DFLer from Grand Rapids expects to see his bill voted on before the close of the legislative session.
 

The bill, SF-345, would create an enhanced driver’s license and identification card to be used as proof of citizenship and for entering the country from Canada. Specifically, the bill’s language reads: “An enhanced driver's license may be used in the same manner as a driver's license, instruction permit, or provisional license, and is approved by the secretary of the United States Department of Homeland Security for purposes of entering the United States.”
 

Such an enhancement would likely require imbedding a computer or radio chip approved by Homeland Security. The special licenses were used during the Winter Olympics between Washington and British Columbia.
 

The enhanced license would in all other respects, act the same as a regular driver’s license. It would cost an additional $15.