Proposition 200, calling for proof of citizenship to register to vote, is causing a furor. But Mexico's version is on books.

The Arizona Republic

MEXICO CITY - Provisions of Proposition 200 have stirred up a storm of debate in Arizona. But here in Mexico, they're already the law.
Arizona's contentious ballot proposal would require voters to show proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote and proof of legal residency when applying for government benefits.

In Mexico, it has been that way for years. Just in hospitals are Mexico's laws more lenient about checking immigration documents.

To see if the requirements are being enforced, a Republic reporter - a U.S. citizen with legal residency in Mexico - went to six public agencies and two schools in Mexico City to inquire about services and registering to vote.

Almost every official asked to see proof of Mexican citizenship or an FM3 visa, the document that allows a person to live in Mexico. Often, it was the first question asked.

"Every agency has its own regulations, but generally, that's the rule: To receive these government services, you have to prove you are in the country legally," said Victoria Hernández, a spokeswoman for the Mexican Secretariat of Government, which oversees immigration.

Those requirements have set off a furious debate in Arizona.

Opponents of Proposition 200, which will be on the Nov. 2 ballot, say it will turn state employees into immigration agents, build a culture of fear in government offices and create a public health risk by discouraging illegal immigrants from seeking medical care.

Supporters say the measure will protect the election process and cut expenses by keeping illegal immigrants from seeking benefits.

The Mexican government has been mostly silent on the issue.

Registering to vote

Under Proposition 200 rules, all Arizonans would have to show proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote.

That could be a birth certificate, a U.S. passport, an Arizona drivers license issued after 1996, a Bureau of Indian Affairs card or a tribal treaty card number. Voters would have to show a photo ID at the polls.

Now, Arizona voters can register through the mail or online. The application has to include either an Arizona drivers license number or the last four digits of a Social Security number.

In Mexico, voter registration is handled by the Federal Elections Institute.

Voters are issued cards with photos and fingerprints when they register, and the cards must be shown at the polls. Poll workers use ultraviolet lights to check security codes printed on the cards.

Mexicans have to register in person at the institute's offices, and they must present one of 19 documents proving Mexican citizenship.

When the Republic reporter asked about registering at an institute office in Mexico City, he was immediately asked if he was a Mexican citizen, then told he would have to present naturalization papers.

Medical care

Proposition 200 requires state and local workers in Arizona to check the immigration status of anyone applying for public benefits.

If they fail to notify federal officials of violations, they could be punished with four months in jail and a $750 fine.

In Mexico, access to health care is guaranteed in Article 2 of the constitution. Officially, at least, the country is more lenient than the United States in caring for poor people and illegal immigrants.

Foreigners who are legal residents have unlimited use of any federal hospital or clinic for an annual fee of $86 and $225 per family, depending on the age of family members.

Births and maternity care are free after one year in the program. Foreigners can also join the government's disability insurance program for about $400 a year.

But officials at the Mexican Social Security Institute, which runs those programs, are strict about visas. The reporter was told he would have to present his FM3 to enroll.

The main difference between Arizona and Mexico is in how illegal immigrant emergency-room patients are handled after they are in stable condition.

In both places, emergency rooms must treat anyone, legal resident or not.

In Arizona, the state indigent care program, the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, pays hospital bills for uninsured illegal immigrants until they are stabilized, spokesman Frank Lopez said.

After that, patients continue to be billed, but if they can't pay, the hospital usually picks up the tab.

About 15,000 illegal immigrants are treated in Arizona hospitals each year, Lopez said.

In Mexico, poor patients are stabilized in an emergency room, then usually transferred to a state hospital, said Jose González Díaz, a spokesman for the Mexican Health Secretariat.

The state hospital charges them a negligible fee. If they prove they can't pay, fees are waived.

Enrolling in school

As in Arizona, foreigners who want to enroll children in Mexican public schools do not have to show proof they are legal residents, said Lizbeth Diego, a spokeswoman for the Public Education Secretariat.

They do, however, have to show evidence they have a fixed residence in Mexico. That could be a utility bill.

Does it matter?

The Republic reporter was also asked for his FM3 visa when applying for a Mexican drivers license. Arizona's Motor Vehicle Division likewise demands proof of lawful residency, in the form of a resident alien card, a passport with visa, a U.S. birth certificate or 15 other types of what it calls "primary" identification.

At the Mexico City Job Bank, a program that matches employers and job-seekers, a sign on the door said participants have to show birth certificates, federal identification numbers and two copies of voter registration cards.

But when the reporter said he was a foreigner, the clerk told him to "just bring whatever documents you have."