California and Missouri Strike New Blows to Real ID Act
The Real ID Act of 2005 is getting more and more opposition from states. A large portion of the reaction of states is being driven by the fact that the law will cost Billions of dollars to implement, and the federal government expects the states to foot the bill. But liberty and privacy groups nationwide are also opposed to the law which would essentially turn state driver’s licenses into a national ID card. Given the federal government’s inability to maintain the security of consumers data – they have leaked the names, addresses and social security numbers of millions of Americans – the law would be a very bad idea even if that were the only reason to oppose it. Unfortunately, the way that the government intends to use the law, your driver’s license would essentially become an internal passport. For anyone who is old enough to remember the Cold War, internal passports were one of the primary examples used to differentiate the Soviet Union from the freedom loving western world.
Last week, California decided that it would not use biometric facial recognition software for people applying for driver’s licenses. The software is a requirement for states to be compliant with Real ID guidelines. Now you might think that in privacy conscious California, the reason that the state is refusing to go along with those guidelines is due to some noble cause. You would be wrong. California is flat broke and simply doesn’t want to spend the $25 million per year that the software would cost.
Even so, if California doesn’t get in line to uphold the Real ID standard, the law is probably dead. That’s because the law says that you will need a Real ID compliant driver’s license or a US Passport to get access to federal buildings (just hope you live in a non-compliant state when you get called to federal jury duty… they won’t be able to let you in the court building), apply for federal benefits or to board an airplane. Since California is a major transportation hub, if the state doesn’t comply it would mean travel delays and snarls that would impact the entire country. How the federal government will deal with this issue is anyone’s guess. Because the issue in California is simply a lack of money, the feds may actually decide to pay for the software to keep real ID on track.
But California is not the only state to snub its nose at the Real ID standard. A number of others have also passed legislation putting the brakes on implementation; some of them permanently barring implementation. Even so, most of these states don’t really possess the clout to stop the law. For instance, Montana has said that it will not comply, but Montana isn’t exactly heavily populated. The state’s total population is under 1 million. Enter Missouri.
Missouri’s state legislature has sent a bill to their Governor for his signature that would bar the state from participation. If he signs the bill – and he has not said he will – the state could be a game-changer for Real ID. The state has two major air hubs – one in St. Louis and the other in Kansas City. And it has a population of nearly 6 million.
Although Missouri’s legislation passed with veto-proof majorities (the state senate passed the bill on a 32-0 vote), the legislative session has now ended. That means that if the state’s governor vetoes the bill, it will have to be brought up again in the next legislative session. Even so, it appears that the chances are good that Missouri will eventually tell the federal government that it can go pound sand. The state appears to be set on a course to reject Real ID overwhelmingly. If that happens, every citizen of this country will owe Missouri and its lawmakers a great debt of gratitude. Missouri’s action could help preserve your liberty to travel freely without government interference, and also help protect your personal information from winding up in the hands of identity thieves.
Privacy Issues 
