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NEWS FROM THE LIBERTARIAN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA
400 Capitol Mall, Suite 900
Sacramento, CA  95814
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For immediate release: April 7, 2000
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For additional information:
Juan Ros, Executive Director
Phone: (818) 782-8400
Mailto:director@ca.lp.org
Web: http://www.ca.lp.org/
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Get a license, register with military? New DMV proposal is unnecessary and onerous, Libertarians charge

The bill, AB 2574 by Assemblyman Mike Briggs (R-Fresno), is scheduled to be heard in the Assembly Transportation Committee on Monday, April 10.

"Once again politicians are attempting to force their worldview on the rest of us," charged Libertarian state executive director Juan Ros.

"The Selective Service is an idea whose time has gone. It's time for lawmakers to abolish this obsolete requirement rather than forcing more young men to register."

Libertarians oppose AB 2574 for several reasons:

* The Selective Service has nothing to do with driving.

"The two are completely unrelated. The government is using one form of compulsory registration -- the requirement to obtain a driver's license -- to accomplish another," Ros pointed out. "Individuals should be free to obtain driver's licenses without this abuse of governmental authority."

* Failing to register with the Selective Service already carries hefty penalties: $250,000 in fines, five years imprisonment, and ineligibility for a number of state and federal programs, including student loans and job training.

"This bill is unnecessary. Although Libertarians advocate the complete abolition of Selective Service, proper enforcement of current law is a less intrusive way of boosting compliance," Ros noted.

* AB 2574 would waste taxpayer money for enforcement and administration.

"Let's not spend millions coming up with the necessary forms and procedures for implementing this law," Ros suggested. "Taxpayers are already subsidizing too many wasteful government programs."

The bottom line: AB 2574 is inconsistent with a free and civil society. "Registration is the first step towards a draft, which some politicians want to revive. Forcing individuals to serve in the military is tantamount to involuntary servitude and should never happen in a free country," added Libertarian Assembly candidate Ron Drioane, who is running against Briggs.

"We urge Californians to contact the Assembly Transportation Committee and demand that they shoot down AB 2574," Ros concluded, "and we call on the committee members to do the same -- before the DMV becomes the 'Department of Military Vigilance.'"