TSA Wants to Start Rejecting Certain State Driver’s Licenses
Joe Cortez December 28, 2015
Department of Homeland Security could begin denying flyers without REAL ID compliant boarding passes in 2016.
Flyers from five states may no longer be able to pass through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints with their state-issued driver’s license in 2016 if the Department of Homeland Security begins enforcing an accepted identification law passed ten years ago. The implementation of existing federal ID laws could force travelers from New York, New Hampshire, Louisiana, Minnesota and Washington to bring their passport for domestic travel.
The new mandate stems from the REAL ID Act, passed in 2006. Created as a means to reduce identity theft while creating more secure ID cards, many states have already implemented the changes. However, a handful of states have decided to opt out of the program, which could create problems for flyers.
Under the law, travelers who are not carrying a compliant state ID can be refused at the TSA checkpoint because their card does not meet federal standards. As a result, flyers would have to carry a passport or other government-issued identification that meets REAL ID Act specifications. Officials for the DHS say flyers will be given a 120-day warning before the new mandates go into effect.
“DHS will ensure the public has ample advanced notice before identification requirements for boarding aircraft change,” the department wrote in an online FAQ. “That notice will include information on the process for individuals with a non-compliant driver’s license or identification card to be able to travel by aircraft.”
Those opposed to the implementation of the REAL ID Act include state legislators and privacy advocates who warn the new mandates will not make Americans any safer. Instead, they argue creating REAL ID compliant cards would create a national identification system, reducing travelers’ privacy and identity protection as a result.
“You create more risk when you connect databases,” Marc Rotenberg, president of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, told the New York Times. “One vulnerability becomes multiple vulnerabilities.”
REAL ID enforcement is one of many changes facing travelers in 2016. Additional programs include withholding passports from those delinquent on taxes and the end of passport book page inserts for frequent international travelers.
[Photo: AP]
This article is very misleading. You single out a handful of states when I know for a fact that extensions of the requirement have been given until at least Oct 10, 2016 for numerous other states (including CA). The whole program is expensive and onerous, which is why quite a few states with larger populations opted out. Of those that have implemented it, many got large federal grants because the costs were astronomical. Perhaps a federal ID card? The passport is the only one I know of that is available to civilians.
It's incorrect to assign responsibility for this with TSA. TSA is merely enacting regulations to comply with the law that was passed by congress and signed into law by the POTUS. You'd be surprised how many laws are enacted by congress that make no sense to the agency staffers who then have to produce a regulatory scheme to enforce the new law. I'll leave the merits of the law to others. The law has been on the books for ten years, which seems like ample notice to implement solutions at the state level. There has been a formal waiver and deferral process in place for some time now. These straggler states have just dragged their heals a bit too long. Surprisingly it's not limited to the "taking away my rights" and "here comes Big Brother" conspirists.
TSA = security theatre. Why not require enhanced screening for high risk groups of people?
In October 2015, Louisiana received a waiver of the requirement from the Federal government. That waiver expires October 10, 2016. This story should have included that fact.
Much needed. Hopeully will be enacted soon.