Op/Ed - Real ID, real problem

Real ID, real problem

The costly, burdensome federal mandate does little to stop illegal immigration and actually leaves us more vulnerable to identify theft; Maryland should join other states in rejecting it

By Cynthia Boersma
June 17, 2008

"No. Nope. No way."

So exclaimed Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer of Montana when asked whether his state would participate in the federal Real ID program.

Frustration with this misguided, expensive and unworkable federal mandate also compelled another governor, Republican Mark Sanford of South Carolina, to call Real ID "the worst piece of legislation I have seen during the 15 years I have been engaged in the political process." If Real ID has any friends in the states, they're not speaking up.

This sentiment is now percolating through the halls of Congress. In recent hearings before the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, senators from both sides of the aisle were blistering in their criticism of Real ID. "The massive amounts of personal information that would be stored in state databases that are to be shared electronically with all other states, as well as the unencrypted data on the Real ID card itself, could provide one-stop shopping for identity thieves," said Sen. Daniel K. Akaka, a Hawaii Democrat, at the hearing over which he presided with Republican Sen. George V. Voinovich of Ohio.

Unfortunately, some folks in Maryland have not yet gotten the message. Opponents of illegal immigration recently staged protests outside Motor Vehicle Administration offices, demonstrating a misunderstanding of Real ID. The erroneous impression that participation in Real ID will prevent illegal immigration or require Maryland to issue driver's licenses only to documented U.S. citizens is also shared by the O'Malley administration.

Before Maryland sinks hundreds of millions of its precious transportation dollars into the Real ID sinkhole, leaders should understand what participation in Real ID will and will not do.

Under the Real ID Act, the federal government requires states to issue uniform driver's licenses - essentially a national ID card - with insecure, unecrypted personal information on machine-readable strips. That means three bad things: huge costs of time and money for Marylanders, an easier task for identity thieves, and less, not more, security for our state.

Real ID will vastly increase the time, travel and expense involved in obtaining a Maryland driver's license. It will require every driver to re-enroll at the MVA. It will require every applicant for a state driver's license to submit original birth certificates and other original source documents in person to obtain or renew a license.

Real ID then requires these documents to be electronically stored in a database accessible to the federal government and every MVA in the country with no established restrictions on access, data sharing or data mining. It will render every Marylander highly vulnerable to identity theft and will subject personal information to misuse and fraud.

Real ID will increase our vulnerability to security threats and fraud at a cost of $4 billion nationwide and over $121.5 million to Maryland. And though it may seem incredible to those who believe Real ID is intended to improve the security of our borders, the one thing it does not mandate is that Maryland require proof of citizenship to obtain a driver's license.

The contradictory and unreal nature of Real ID is driving a rebellion against it by the states. Nine states have enacted laws prohibiting state participation in the program. Ten other states have passed resolutions opposing the program. States refusing to implement Real ID include states with a lawful-presence requirement for their driver's licenses as well as states with no such requirement.

Thankfully, there is a far better alternative. Recently, the National Conference of State Legislatures issued a call to support repeal of Real ID and passage of replacement legislation. The Identification Security Enhancement Act was introduced this year in the U.S. Senate with bipartisan support. That bill would protect privacy, would achieve effective driver's license security, could be implemented more quickly than Real ID and would not cost billions of dollars to be shouldered by the states.

A congressional subcommittee is considering this year's budget for the Department of Homeland Security, which contains $50 million for Real ID implementation. This is a tiny fraction of Real ID's real cost.

Maryland should join other states in saying no to Real ID. Marylanders should urge Gov. Martin O'Malley to end our state's participation in this wasteful and dangerous program and Sens. Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski to support the federal reform bill. This failed program should not be allowed to limp along to the next administration.

Real ID may be a real nightmare, but it is one from which we can still wake up.

Cynthia Boersma is legislative director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland. Her e-mail at boersma@aclu-md.org.

Wheeling, West Virginia ACLU Opposes Real ID Act

ACLU Opposes Real ID Act
By IAN HICKS Staff Writer
May 29, 2008

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.