Iowa yesterday became the fourth state after Idaho, Mississippi and Florida to join the Records and Information from DMWs for E-Verify (RIDE) program, which collects driver's license and state ID information from participating states to be used in the employment verification process.

Such state-based information then can be culled from the online databases that form the E-Verify program, which enables employers on a voluntary basis to check the legal status of job applicants to work in the United States against documents on file.

Generally, new hires must present justifying documents to prospective employers to prove their legal status to work in the United States. Driver's licenses and state ID documents belong to what is called the "List B" category of documents that can be used during the I-9 verification process.

According to the U.S.. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which controls and monitors the I-9 process, List B documents establish identity only. To prove legal status, a person submitting a List B document must also submit a List C document, for instance, a birth certificate or an unrestricted Social Security card.