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DEL.ICIO.USBush delays implementation of ‘Real ID’ drivers licenses
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Washington Post has the following article this morning, of importance to many in the state Capitol:
The Bush administration will allow states to postpone the planned May 2008 launch of a program to toughen security requirements for driver’s licenses by up to 19 months, in response to complaints about the projected $11 billion cost and potential disruptions, congressional and Department of Homeland Security officials said yesterday.
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By Fall Line
March 1, 2007 4:01 PM | Link to this
The feds need to get out of the state drivers license business. There is no program in existence today that cannot be made worse by the intervention of a well meaning federal bureaucrat.
By Give me your papers!
March 3, 2007 6:52 PM | Link to this
Along with being fraught with privacy concerns, this is a major state government vs. federal government issue. The stated purpose of REAL IDs are to confirm nationwide that the person about to enter a federal building, a nuclear powerplant, or board an FAA regulated commercial aircraft is who he says he is (cite http://www.dhs.gov/xprevprot/laws/gc_1172767635686.shtm). A more inexpensive and less intrusive way of accomplishing these ostensible goals is to make it mandatory that one needs a valid US passport to enter federal buildings, nuclear power plants, or board a US commercial flight. A main reason the federal government does not want to take advantage of an already federally scrutinezed form of identification is because they plan on adding more instances where it is neccessary to show your newly mandatory REAL ID license. What’s next? Will we have to show a REAL ID license when making purchases too (other than alcohol related)? You have no right to know who I am if all I want is to buy a candy bar from you!