82R1961 AJZ-F By: Alonzo H.B. No. 277 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to the identification information required of an applicant for a driver's license. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 521.142, Transportation Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows: (a) An application for an original license must state the applicant's full name and place and date of birth. This information must be verified by presentation of proof of identity satisfactory to the department. The department must accept the following documents as satisfactory proof of identity under this subsection: (1) an offender identification card or similar form of identification issued to an inmate by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice if the applicant also provides supplemental verifiable records or documents that aid in establishing identity; or (2) an identity document that is issued by the government of another country, if that document bears the applicant's photograph, full name, and date of birth and the government of the other country has established reasonable mechanisms by which the department can verify the identity document. (a-1) For purposes of Subsection (a)(2), an identity document includes a passport, a consular identity document, and a national identity document that complies with federal law. SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.