REAL ID – Page 11 – Papers, Please!

Jun 23 2008

Department of Homeland Security Gives States $79M for REAL ID Implementation

The Department of Homeland Security announced $79 million in grants to states for implementation of the REAL ID national identification system. The funds will go to projects “such as collecting applicants’ photos at the start of the application process and incorporating additional physical security features into DLs and IDs. Other funded projects that advance REAL ID implementation, include transitioning to centralized DL and ID production, improving data records for driver’s licenses, and upgrading source document imaging and storage.”

DHS also wants the states to use the funds to create a central “verification hub that will enable states to query federal and non-federal document-issuing authorities and verify applicant source documents.” “Verification hub” is DHS’s latest euphemism for the national identification system it seeks to create by linking the motor vehicle databases of all 56 states and territories, which the agency hopes will contain data on all 240 million driver’s license and cardholders nationwide.

Twenty states have passed anti-REAL ID legislation. The latest was Arizona. Last week, its governor signed into law a bill that prohibits Arizona from implementing the REAL ID system.

Read IDP’s comments on the draft regulations here (pdf). Our privacy and civil liberty arguments remain even with the final regulations. No national identification system should ever be created, whether under REAL ID or any other scheme.

Apr 11 2008

Alaska Joins REAL ID Refuseniks

The Alaska state legislature passed a law this evening banning the expenditure of any funds to implement the REAL ID Act. The official state Senate announcement trumpets this “legislation (that) opts Alaska out of REAL ID”.

The Identity Project had the honor of being instrumental in educating Alaskans on the evils of REAL ID: we applaud the passage of SB202.

Mar 31 2008

ID Still Not Required To Fly

As reported several weeks ago and in accordance with the Gilmore decision, ID is not required to fly in the United States. Two recent documents have corroborated this fact. The first is today’s letter from South Carolina Governor Sanford to DHS in which he does not ask for an extension to comply with Real ID, but he does reference on its last page the Gilmore decision and the court’s determination therein that there is no ID to fly requirement.

The second is a letter from DHS dated March 22, 2008 to a private individual who queried DHS on their identification to fly policy after seeing signs in airports stating ID was required to fly despite the 9th Circuit’s ruling in Gilmore. This letter states that ID is, in fact, not required to fly domestically, despite DHS’ mis-truths printed on signs at airports.

This letter is important because the law that governs ID requirements to travel by air in the United States is identified by the Secretary of TSA to be Sensitive Security Information (“SSI”) meaning its release would be “detrimental to the safety of transportation” – meaning it’s “secret law” – meaning we can’t tell when the law has changed. All we are now allowed to know is that the law has not changed as of March 22, 2008.

We prefer the Federal Register as the resource for being alerted as to a change in the laws as opposed to DHS’ random corrections to their continuous mis-truths printed up on signs in our nation’s airports.

Mar 10 2008

IDP Helps Forment REAL ID Rebellion In California

After a long and uncharacteristic silence, the State of California is finally weighing-in on the national ID card debate: the anti-REAL ID Assembly Joint Resolution 51 was introduced today by Transportation Committee Chairman Pedro Nava.

At the Assembly’s invitation, IDP Director Jim Harrison was instrumental in drafting the Resolution: go Jim!

More on the Resolution can be read over at Ryan “That’s a shovel, not a spade” Singel’s webular log, 27 B-6.

Feb 03 2008

Will you really need a “REAL-ID” to fly? No.

There’ve been a lot of scary reports lately about how, if your state governor doesn’t “volunteer” to collaborate with the Department of Homeland Security’s “REAL-ID” scheme for a distributed national identity card and linked databases of personal information about every American resident, the DHS won’t “allow” you to board any airline flight in the U.S. of A.

What’s the skinny?

It’s an empty threat, designed to intimidate citizens, state legislators, and governors. You’ll still have a legal right to travel, even by air, even if your state opts out of compliance with the REAL-ID Act.

The DHS does have plans to require everyone who wants to fly to carry government-issued papers and get permission for each flight from the DHS. The DHS is already trying to put some of those into effect this month for international travel, and has proposed to extend them to domestic flights as part of Secure Flight.

But those other rules are independent of the REAL-ID Act, and don’t yet affect domestic air travel. Nothing in the REAL-ID law or regulations would require you to show ID to fly.

Don’t be scared. Ignore the empty threats. Stand up for your rights, and fly freely — with or without papers or permission.

Jan 28 2008

The Guys At ID Smart Aren’t Very Clever

ID Smart Spam

Jan 11 2008

The REAL ID Final Rules Are Out

While we plow through the several hundred pages of text and figure-out precisely how heinous this National ID card scheme is, feel free to read it yourself:

Part the First
Part the Second

Jun 29 2007

Ordinary people wrote their Senators against Real ID

Part of why the Senate voted to debate the amendment which would have cut Real National ID out of the Immigration Bill is because thousands of ordinary Americans sent them faxes asking them to remove those provisions. These messages were written by ordinary folks, in their own words. Read those moving faxes to Senators on Real ID here.

Jun 29 2007

Did Real National ID help derail the immigration bill?

We think so. Ars Technica asks the question. So does Declan McCullagh on CNet News. Montana Senators Baucus and Tester, who filed the amendment on which the bill foundered, are happy to take the credit.

Jun 29 2007

Former Congressman Bob Barr opposes Real ID

Bob Barr is a former conservative hate-monger who somehow found his moral compass. He is now preaching tolerance of gays in the military, ending the drug war, repealing Real National ID, and most recently taking the Real National ID requirement out of the immigration bill. He is the first politician who straightforwardly says, “no America citizen should have to prove to a government entity who they are in order to obtain or retain employment.” We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.

The thread that runs through all these issues is honoring the rights of individuals to make their own choices without being tracked or coerced by the nanny state. Welcome to your sanity, Bob; we hope you keep it a long time.