Mainers understand the rhythm of the tides, the sound of cracking ice underfoot and that decency doesn’t require a passport. Lately, though, it feels like someone is rigging the lines. I’m not talking about ice fishing but ICE fishing.

State House bill HP 864, LD 1329 is an act to identify United States citizenship status on Maine drivers’ licenses.

At an April 30 hearing, opponents appeared to outnumber supporters, a positive sign in my opinion. One legislator, in a revealing moment, asked: “Wouldn’t it be just as likely that inherent prejudice on the part of the law enforcement officer pulling a person over and having an interaction on the road would be alleviated by the officer seeing that he’s now dealing with a U.S. citizen … wouldn’t it be just as likely that, in that case, that the tensions would be lessened as much as the tensions would be increased by seeing someone who was of a non-citizen status?”

This question exposes the very problem within this proposed bill.

Most Mainers, I believe, including our police officers, feel that drivers should be treated fairly and lawfully according to the traffic situation at hand, regardless of citizenship.

And for those fearing non-citizens are voting illegally: Why would any legal resident risk their status, or would any undocumented person risk exposure, by committing a felony and voting? As testified by Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, “We do not have any evidence that any non-citizen has voted.” There are already secure ways to verify citizenship when needed without branding it onto driver’s licenses.

We’ve seen or heard about terrorizing ICE fishing since Jan. 20: individuals snatched off the street by masked agents; U.S. citizens and legal residents detained, even deported, without cause or due process; a mother and her daughters — all U.S. citizens — dragged out of their home by 20 armed ICE officers in an “oops, our bad, wrong family” raid. The image of her screaming while half-dressed children cry should haunt every lawmaker.

ICE fishing’s “catch and release” of Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi is also one of many. These are not isolated incidents; they are patterns of unlawful overreach and abuse. With Homeland Security Director Kristi Noem wildly misrepresenting the foundational right of habeas corpus in a May 20 Senate Committee hearing, Maine should be especially wary of proposed bills making it easier to detain, harass, and even deport non-U.S. citizens who are lawfully living, working, visiting and studying in our state.

Maine has a proud tradition of true and good ice fishing — rustic shacks, snowmobiles, pizza delivered to frozen lakes, supper pulled fresh from under the ice. Let’s keep it this way. More ice fishing, less ICE fishing.

HP864, LD1329 has no social upside and would be extremely expensive to implement (just imagine BMV lines while issuing new licenses to every driver). Most shamefully, this bill would further open the door to human rights abuses that the United States, citing our democracy, has historically condemned other countries for. According to Maine’s Legislative Information Department, if the currently divided — seven opposed, six for — committee reports this proposed bill out for a decision before June 18, Maine’s House and Senate will be debating and voting on it.

Please urge your state lawmaker to vote “no” to HP 864, LD 1329.