As I said, this happened when I was using my Citibank AAdvantage Mastercard WITH THE PHOTO ID ON IT. I expect to get asked for ID when using the DC with no photo on it. It does indeed seem to be a California thing. I travel worldwide and outside of CA no one ever asks for ID when using any credit card. And my purchase at Lowes was $11. The purchase at Mervyns was $9.