Driving test for refugees drawing scrutiny

SALT LAKE CITY — After taking the written portion of the Utah driver's license test six times — faced again and again with phrases like "right-of-way" — Jeanete Mukeshimana gave up and went to Arizona to get a license. In Arizona, she was allowed an interpreter who spoke her native Burundi.

Many refugees have been making such pilgrimages ever since the state's driver license division last year eliminated the option of taking an illustrated version of the test. Utah also does not permit interpreters, or tests given in languages other than English.

"The test is an English acquisition test more than a test about driving," says Beth Garstka, volunteer coordinator at the English Skills Learning Center in Salt Lake City.

Most of the Center's clients need to be able to drive to get to jobs, some in parts of the valley without good bus service. Many of her clients have failed the written test numerous times, Garstka says, and "tons" have traveled to neighboring states to get licenses. Others, who want a Utah license or can't travel to another state, have had to get by without a license for now.

But relief may be on the way.

State legislators Curt Bramble, R-Provo, and David Litvack, D-Salt Lake City, are looking into the issue, researching how other states meet the needs of refugees. "We recognize that for the refugee population, access to a driver's license is matter of survival, not a nice-to-have," Litvack says.

It's important, he says, to distinguish between refugees, who have come to America after being displaced, and immigrants who choose to come. It's important, he says, "to separate the refugee issue from immigration. … It's important that we communicate that clearly to our colleagues" in the Legislature.

For Bramble, the distinction is clearly between refugees and undocumented immigrants. "We want to be very careful that what we do for legal refugees doesn't open floodgates to allow illegal aliens to take a test in anything other than English," he says. "I'm not interested in lowering the bar for either drivers' licenses or driving privilege cards."

The driver license division removed the illustrated driving test last year in a response to questions about whether it was the equivalent of a written test. Utah law requires that would-be drivers can "read and understand simple English used in highway traffic and directional signs."

"We haven't come to any conclusion to what the solution will look like," Bramble says about future testing for refugees. "But I do know that we will find a solution."

In the meantime, the English Skills Learning Center this week hosted a workshop to train volunteers, English as a Second Language teachers, and driving instructors how to better teach refugees to be test-takers and safe drivers.