Spitzer agreed to mark the immigrant licenses unusable to board a plane or as federal identification, and to require passports and proof of state residency of all applicants -- two major changes that already are drawing fire from immigrant-rights advocates.

He also became only the fourth governor to win a long-sought enhanced-license option for those who live near the border to enable them to go back and forth without a passport.

In turn, Spitzer's compromises appeared to win acquiescence from homeland security chief, Michael Chertoff, not to fight Spitzer's plan. And while Chertoff made plain that he didn't like Spitzer's new immigrant licensing, he said he was powerless to stop it and even indicated he was pleased Spitzer was working so hard to improve overall driver's license security in New York.

"I don't endorse giving licenses to people who are not here legally, but federal law does allow states to make that choice," Chertoff said.

For his part, Chertoff got a powerful governor to commit to the federal government's post-9/11 Real ID effort to make regular state driver's licenses harder to forge. New York becomes the largest state to do so at a time when several governors are balking at the plans as too costly and difficult to put in place.

Yet if both sides hoped Saturday's announcement would solve nagging political problems, it appeared to do anything but, with advocates on both sides of the illegal-immigrant licensing controversy complaining the deal was bad for their side.

Immigrant-rights groups said the deal could make it impossible for some to apply.

Spitzer's move "is a lose-lose political decision that betrays his most ardent supporters and emboldens the anti-immigrant opposition," said Chung-Wa Hong of the New York Immigration Coalition.

"Public safety for all is not possible when we carve out a million people to be outside of the public safety rules or stigmatize them as second-class residents marked by a Scarlet Letter."

But Spitzer's Republican critics said his compromises did nothing to ease their fears that he was not only undermining security but also creating another incentive for illegal immigrants to come to New York.

"The flip by the governor today does not change the fact that he is arrogantly insisting on giving driver's licenses to illegal aliens, licenses that could still be used as breeder documents to obtain other valid forms of identification," said Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno.

Republican leaders also reiterated the prospect of legal action against Spitzer's plan. "The conference is still definitely planning on going ahead with the lawsuit unless the governor rescinds the proposal by Oct. 31," said Joshua Fitzpatrick, communications director for Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco.

However, there were some signs of compromise. A statewide police group lauded the agreement, saying that licensing illegal immigrants would improve safety by subjecting people who are already driving to driver's tests and insurance requirements.

"The agreement ... will benefit law enforcement efforts by identifying a larger portion of the undocumented population and will also encourage a higher standard for highway safety purposes among that population in New York," said John Grebert of the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police.

Spitzer announced in September that he would grant driver's licenses to illegal immigrants.

New York has between 500,000 and 1 million undocumented immigrants, many of whom are driving without a license and car insurance or with fake driver's licenses.

Also unknown is the cost to taxpayers and drivers and the timetable for putting the plans in place. Previous estimates put the cost of implementing Real ID in New York in the tens of millions -- most of which would be borne by state taxpayers. Spitzer anticipated the plans would be put in place sometime next year.

Copyright © 2007, Newsday Inc.

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