By Gregory Korte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Samuel Reynoso, 23, of Price Hill is from Guatemala. (Steven M. Herppich photo) | ZOOM |

Samuel Reynoso, a 23-year-old Guatemalan immigrant who lives in Price Hill, has a passport, a visa and an Ohio driver's license.

He also carries an identification card issued by the Guatemalan consulate that identifies him as a Guatemalan citizen living in the United States.

As of this month, the city of Cincinnati will accept that card as proof of his city residency, or as a valid identification if the police stop him. City Council passed a resolution Aug. 6 asking city departments to accept the card.

Proponents of the cards - called matricula consular cards - say they help Mexican and Guatemalan immigrants get needed services from bank accounts to library cards. Cincinnati joins 402 cities, including Cleveland, Toledo and Indianapolis - and the entire state of Indiana - in accepting the cards.

But as the cards gain wider acceptance, they're also facing a growing chorus of opposition from Cincinnati to Washington.

"The Mexican government can issue whatever it wants to issue. It's just whether state, local and federal governments have to accept it. We already have an ID process for legal immigrants. It's called a passport," said Jim Urling, chairman of the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes, a group of conservative activists in Cincinnati.

Urling worries that the cards will allow illegal immigrants to get city services at a cost to legal taxpayers. "If they don't have ID, they're probably not here legally, and they ought to be deported," he said.

The city's two Republican congressmen, Steve Chabot and Rob Portman, both voted last month for amendment to an appropriations bill that would limit the use of the cards.

"I'm clearly on the other side of City Council's action. You're essentially condoning and making it easier for people to come into this country illegally and stay here," Chabot said. "Immigration can be good for the country, but it has to be controlled immigration. I think these matricula consular cards are basically encouraging illegal immigration."

Chabot is co-sponsor of a bill, called the Identification Integrity Act of 2003, that would go even further. It would ban the use of any identification card - other than a passport - issued by a foreign government.

Congressional critics say the cards are easily forged, making it more difficult to verify the true identification of foreign nationals at a time when homeland security is paramount. But the consulates say they verify the identity of each person getting a card, and that the cards themselves have dozens of security features - some hidden - that police officers are trained to look for to confirm their authenticity.

Councilman David Pepper was the chief sponsor of the Cincinnati resolution, which passed unanimously. He said opponents of the card were overreacting.

"If you're illegal, it doesn't make you legal. The (Immigration and Naturalization Service) still needs to do its job," Pepper said. "The fears that some people raise are just not well-founded. The police are already doing it - and they're doing it because it makes sense for safety and they know that."

Police use the cards to identify the victim of a crime, or to write a summons for a minor offense. Because only a handful of Cincinnati police officers speak Spanish, the cards can also help reduce language barriers and give police more information about the immigrants they come into contact with.

Banks, too, are allowing the use of the cards to allow people to open accounts and make withdrawals.

Regional banking giant Fifth Third has led the way locally, allowing the use of the cards - with a federal taxpayer identification number - for more than a year. Key Bank and Provident Bank have followed suit.

Without those cards, many immigrants resort to high-fee check cashing outlets and carry cash - making them targets of crime. But for various reasons, including their immigration status and a lack of identification, they may be reluctant to report the crime to police.

Reynoso has other forms of identification, but he's reluctant to carry his passport for fear it will get lost or stolen, and his driver's license doesn't identify him as a Guatemalan citizen. The Guatemalan consulate in Indianapolis issues the cards.

"I hope by getting this card, it will be one step toward overcoming the problems we face here," Reynoso said through an interpreter at Su Casa, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati's Hispanic ministry in Lower Price Hill. "Ever since the city started accepting it, I feel more welcomed in the city."

Pepper said making immigrants feel welcome was a key part of the city's efforts to rebuild neighborhoods.

"The average city grew in the '90s. We didn't," he said. "The difference between the cities that gained population and those that didn't is immigration."

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E-mail gkorte@enquirer.com