[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of the Town
of West New York 7-21-2016 by Ord.
No. 14/16. Amendments noted where applicable.]
WHEREAS, the Town of West New York recognizes that many of its
residents do not have access to various forms of identification and
therefore have difficulty obtaining services and access to health
care, as well as entry into public/government buildings; and
WHEREAS, the Town of West New York also recognizes that many
of its residents are undocumented and therefore are unable to obtain
and produce acceptable documentation, resulting in greater difficulty
in obtaining, for example, services and access to health care; and
WHEREAS, the availability of an identification card issued by
the Town of West New York will be helpful to many residents and immigrants:
A.
The Town of West New York hereby establishes a West New York Identification
Card Program, which shall be issued to individuals who can prove their
identity and residency, in accordance with the terms of this chapter.
B.
The Department of Public Affairs (hereinafter referred to as the
"Administering Department") shall be designated as the department
to administer the West New York Identification Card Program.
C.
The Administering Department shall issue such policies and procedures
necessary to effectuate the purposes of this chapter, including the
designation of access sites where applications for such cards shall
be made available for pickup and submission. The Administering Department
shall also make the applications available online.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The authorized use of an address by a Town agency, hospital,
private or public shelter, nonprofit organization or religious institution
in West New York serving homeless individuals or survivors of domestic
violence.
A letter from a Town agency, hospital, nonprofit organization,
private or public shelter, nonprofit organization, or religious institution
in West New York, New Jersey, authorizing the use of address. The
letter must indicate the applicant has received services from the
entity for the past 15 days and may use the entity's address
for mailing purposes (dated within 15 days). The address on the WNYID
card will be "care of" the organization.
The Town agency, hospital, private or public shelter, nonprofit
organization, or religious institution in West New York, New Jersey,
serving homeless individuals or survivors of domestic violence.
A person who can establish that he or she currently resides
in the Town of West New York.
Unless otherwise identified shall solely mean the Town of
West New York.
An identification card issued by the Town of West New York
that shall, at a minimum, display the cardholder's photograph,
name, date of birth, address, signature, and issuance and expiration
date. Such card shall also, at the cardholder's option, display
the cardholder's self-designated gender. Such identification
card shall be designated in a manner to deter fraud.
A.
The Town of West New York identification card shall be available
to any resident of the Town of West New York regardless of his or
her race, color, creed, age, national origin, alienage, or citizenship
status, gender, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, partnership
status, any lawful source of income, housing status, status as a victim
of domestic violence or status as a victim of sex offenses or stalking,
or conviction or arrest record, provided that such resident is able
to provide the requirements for establishing his or her identity and
residency as set forth in this chapter and of any applicable policies
and procedures established by the Administering Department.
B.
The West New York identification card shall display at minimum the
applicant's full name, photograph, address, date of birth, signature,
and card issuance and expiration dates.
(1)
The Administering Department shall, through policy and procedure
established as required by this chapter, create guidelines to protect
the address of victims of domestic violence or alternate requirements
for applicants who lack a permanent address. Such card shall also,
at the cardholder's option, display the cardholder's self-designated
gender.
(2)
Such identification card shall be designed in a manner to deter fraud,
which may include: bar codes, serial numbers, watermarks, Town Seal,
and other security measures to deter fraud.
C.
The Town of West New York identification card is valid for two years
from date of issuance. Residents age 14 or over may apply for a card.
Relocation out of the Town invalidates the Town of West New York identification
card, and should relocation occur, the cardholder shall return the
card to the Town for destruction.
D.
The fee for the issuance of the Town of West New York identification
card shall be $10 for adults (18 years of age and older) and $7 for
children (14 to 17 years of age), veterans, the disabled and senior
citizens. Renewal of the card shall be $10, and change of information
shall be $7. The Administering Department may adopt rules and permit
residents who cannot afford to pay such fee(s) to make a hardship
application and to be granted a full or partial waiver of the fee.
(1)
The Administering Department may, in full or in part, waive the fee
for the Town of West New York identification card if an applicant
can establish a hardship exemption. Applicants may file for a hardship
exception waiver during the application's intake process. In
order for an applicant to be granted a hardship waiver, the applicant
must demonstrate and have proof of one of the following circumstances:
(a)
The applicant is currently homeless; or
(b)
The applicant has proof of eviction within the last three months;
or
(c)
The applicant has recently reported domestic violence; or
(d)
The applicant has proof of substantial debt caused by medical
expenses within the last 12 months; or
(e)
The applicant is currently unemployed; or
(f)
The applicant has filed for bankruptcy within the last six months;
or
(g)
The applicant currently receives one of the following: Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program, or SSI, or TANF, or food stamps. The
applicant should provide proof in the form of a letter, notice or
other official document containing the name of the agency granting
the benefit, the name of the recipient of the benefit and the name
of the benefit received.
(h)
The applicant's current household income is at or below
15% of the federal poverty level.
In order to obtain a Town of West New York identification card,
an applicant must establish the identity and residency within the
Town of West New York as follows:
A.
Proof of identity. The Town of West New York Identification Card
Program will use a point system to determine if applicants are able
to prove identity and residency in West New York, New Jersey. In order
to establish identity, an applicant shall be required to produce one
or more of the following documents: an unexpired U.S. or foreign passport;
an unexpired U.S. driver's license; an unexpired U.S. boater's
license; a voter registration card; a valid U.S. state corrections
identification card; a formerly incarcerated release form; an unexpired
U.S. state identification card; a U.S. permanent resident card; a
consular identification card; a photo identification card with name,
address, date of birth, and expiration date issued by another country
to its citizens or nationals as an alternative to a passport for reentry
to the issuing country; a certified copy of a U.S. or foreign birth
certificate; a social security card; a national identification card
with photo, name, address, date of birth, and expiration date; a valid
foreign driver's license; a U.S. or foreign military identification
card; a current visa issued by a government agency; a current U.S.
work permit; a U.S. Individual Taxpayer Identification Number ("ITIN")
authorization letter; an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card; or
any other documentation that the Administering Department deems acceptable.
If the individual is a minor, proof must be furnished on behalf of
said minor by the individual's parents or legal guardian or by
a court of competent jurisdiction. The Administering Department shall,
through the policy and procedure it establishes, create a point system
to ensure uniformity and nonbiased requirements by which individuals
may establish identity and residency. The Administering Department,
through its policies and procedures, shall determine the weight to
be given to each type of document provided in this subsection and
require that at a minimum an applicant produce more than one document
to establish identity.
B.
Proof of residency. In order to establish residency, an applicant
must present one or more of the following items showing both the applicant's
name and residential address located within the Town: a utility bill,
a local property tax statement or mortgage payment receipt; a bank
account statement; proof that the applicant has a minor child currently
enrolled in a school located within the Town; an employment pay stub;
a jury summons or court order issued by a state or federal court;
a federal or state income tax or refund statement; an insurance bill
(homeowner's, health, life or automobile insurance); a care address
letter confirming residency; and any other document the Administering
Department determines is acceptable, which shall be set forth in the
policies and procedures it promulgates. The Administering Department
shall create, through its policies and procedures, alternative methods
to establish residency, notwithstanding the lack of a fixed address.
The Administering Department may consider a care address acceptable
for the homeless and domestic violence applicants.
C.
All Town of West New York departments shall accept the West New York
municipal identification card as proof of identity and residence for
access to Town services and benefits unless such acceptance is prohibited
by federal or state law or unless the department or authority has
reason to suspect fraud by the purported cardholder. The Town of West
New York shall take reasonable efforts to promote the acceptance of
the card by banks and other public and private institutions and publicize
the benefits associated with the Town of West New York identification
cards.
The records relating to the application and issuance of the
Town of West New York identification cards shall be maintained in
accordance with law.
A.
The Town of West New York shall make best efforts to protect the
confidentiality of all municipal card applicants to the maximum extent
allowable by federal and state law. The Town of West New York shall
not disclose personal information obtained from an applicant for a
Town of West New York municipal identification card to any individual,
public, or private entity, unless required by a court of competent
jurisdiction, or authorized in writing by the individual to whom such
information pertains, or when such individual is a minor, or is otherwise
not legally competent, by such individual's parent or legal guardian;
when so ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction; to a requesting
Town department for the limited purpose of administering the program
or determining or facilitating the applicant's eligibility for
additional benefits or services or care and provided that such disclosure
is made in accordance with all applicable federal and state privacy
laws and regulations.
B.
The Administering Department shall not retain original documents
or copies of documents provided by an applicant to prove identity
or residency when applying for a West New York identification card.
A.
The Town of West New York is providing the West New York identification
card for identification and access to services provided by the Town
of West New York. The Town does not act as guarantor or warrantor
either of the information provided by the applicant for the West New
York identification card or against any acts, criminal or otherwise,
committed by the individual(s) while possessing or using the West
New York identification card. The Town does not waive any of its protections
afforded under federal, state or local laws, including, but not limited
to, the immunities under the New Jersey Tort Claims Act, N.J.S.A.
59:1-1 et seq., by processing or issuing the West New York identification
card.
B.
The Administering Department shall submit a report to the Mayor and
the Town of West New York Board of Commissioners on the status of
the Town Identification Card Program on a yearly basis or at the request
of the Mayor and/or Board of Commissioners.
A.
Altering or intentionally damaging the West New York municipal identification
card, using another person's West New York municipal identification
card, or allowing the cardholder's West New York municipal card
to be used by another person may result in confiscation of the card
and is in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:28-7.
B.
Submission of false documents to obtain a West New York municipal
identification card is a violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:21-2.1C.
C.
Making false statements to obtain a West New York Municipal identification
card is a violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:21-4 and is punishable by law.
D.
Except as otherwise expressly provided for in this section, any person
who violates any provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction
thereof, be punished by one or more of the following penalties: 1)
a fine not exceeding $1,000; 2) imprisonment for any term not exceeding
90 days; or 3) a period of community service not exceeding 90 days.
Separate offenses shall be deemed committed on each day during or
on which a violation occurs or continues.
The Administering Department shall report monthly to the Municipal
Administrator and the Board of Commissioners data outlining how many
West New York identification cards have been dispensed by the Town.
The report shall only include information pertinent to determine the
effectiveness of the overall program.
