It seems like anyone, regardless of citizenship, can obtain a New York State driver's license. You do not even need to know English to take the written test because it is offered in 22 different languages.

According to the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, the current system of issuing driver's licenses is vulnerable to fraud and abuse because there is no national tracking system and because there are as many types of driver's licenses as there are states in the union. We need to alter our current system because it might also help the government catch terrorists.

I am currently sponsoring a bill to limit the time that a person on a travel, work, or student visa may hold a New York State driver's license to the expiration date of the visa.

Currently, a person in New York on a travel visa may obtain a driver's license for the same amount of time as a citizen of this state, regardless of the expiration date of the visa. This is a problem because a person could remain illegally in the United States and still have a valid driver's license. The legislation I am sponsoring would eliminate this problem by setting an expiration date of the license to correspond to the expiration date of the visa.

Driving is a privilege -- not a right. We need to verify the legal status of non-citizens and ultimately ensure that we help identify those in this country whose goal is to harm Americans.

I don't want to see another tragedy like the one that happened on September 11. It is my understanding that seven of the September 11 terrorists allegedly obtained driver's licenses fraudulently and as a result, one of the hijackers evaded detainment by a highway patrol in New Jersey. We can no longer permit this to happen. We can't take any more chances. New York, along with the federal government, needs to strengthen the entire driver's license application process to help secure a safer America. It is my hope that the Democrats in the Assembly will take this bill seriously and move it to the floor for a vote.