The Wheeling chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union voted unanimously Wednesday to oppose the Real ID Act, a controversial law mandating national standards for state-issued drivers’ licenses and identification cards.
The Real ID Act, which was signed into law May 11, 2005, set national standards for what data is included on identification cards, what documentation must be presented when applying and for the sharing of motor vehicle databases between states. The original deadline for compliance was to be May 11 of this year, but the federal government has extended that deadline to Dec. 31, 2009.
Much of the opposition to the act stems from the use of machine-readable technology, which is a standardized two-dimensional bar code. Some believe this could enable the federal government to more easily track the activities of Americans.
“The government wants to keep track of everyone. It is (the ACLU’s) mission to protect civil and human rights, including privacy,” said Frank Calabrese, a member of the ACLU’s Wheeling chapter and member-at-large of the organization’s West Virginia affiliate. “This would be a huge invasion of privacy. Our state mantra is ‘Mountaineers Are Always Free.’”
Wheeling chapter President Barbara Jenks said she plans to inform ACLU-WV of her chapter’s opposition, in hopes of bolstering opposition to the law on a statewide level.
After the Dec. 31, 2009, deadline passes, citizens presenting driver’s licenses or identification cards issued by states that have not complied with the new national standards may have difficulty entering federal buildings or boarding federally regulated commercial aircraft without further screening.
Forty-six of the 50 states have requested extensions for compliance, citing funding issues. The law places the burden of funding on individual states — the cost to Maine taxpayers alone will be at least $185 million over five years, according to a resolution passed by that state refusing to comply with the measure.
Calabrese alluded to a classic George Orwell novel in voicing his opposition to the Real ID Act.
“It’s going to be ‘1984’ — just a little later, in 2008,” he said.
ACLU-WV is one of the fastest-growing state affiliates in the country. It has been in existence for just 40 years, making it one of the newest affiliates east of the Mississippi River.
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