THE REAL DEAL ON THE REAL ID
On May 9th 2005, the 109th Congress passed and the President signed into law H.R.418
REAL ID Act of 2005 (Referred to Senate Committee after being Received from House)
TITLE II--IMPROVED SECURITY FOR DRIVERS' LICENSES AND PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION CARDS
SEC. 202. MINIMUM DOCUMENT REQUIREMENTS AND ISSUANCE STANDARDS FOR FEDERAL RECOGNITION.
(1) The person's full legal name.
(2) The person's date of birth.
(3) The person's gender.
(4) The person's driver's license or identification card number.
(5) A digital photograph of the person.
(6) The person's address of principle residence.
(7) The person's signature.
(8) Physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication of the document for fraudulent purposes.
(9) A common machine-readable technology, with defined minimum data elements.
SEC. 203. LINKING OF DATABASES.
(b) Requirements for Information- A State motor vehicle database shall contain, at a minimum, the following information:
(1) All data fields printed on drivers' licenses and identification cards issued by the State.
(2) Motor vehicle drivers' histories, including motor vehicle violations, suspensions, and points on licenses.
SEC. 302. USE OF GROUND SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGIES FOR BORDER SECURITY.
(1) consider various current and proposed ground surveillance technologies that could be utilized to enhance the border security of the United States;
(2) assess the threats to the border security of the United States that could be addressed by the utilization of such technologies; and
(3) assess the feasibility and advisability of utilizing such technologies to address such threats, including an assessment of the technologies considered best suited to address such threats.
What does that mean for me?
Starting three years from now, if you live or work in the United States, you'll need a federally approved ID card to travel on an airplane, open a bank account, collect Social Security payments, or take advantage of nearly any government service. Practically speaking, your driver's license likely will have to be reissued to meet federal standards.
The Real ID Act hands the Department of Homeland Security the power to set these standards and determine whether state drivers' licenses and other ID cards pass muster. Only ID cards approved by Homeland Security can be accepted "for any official purpose" by the feds.
How will I get one of these new ID cards?
You'll still get one through your state motor vehicle agency, and it will likely take the place of your drivers' license. But the identification process will be more rigorous.
For instance, you'll need to bring a "photo identity document," document your birth date and address, and show that your Social Security number is what you had claimed it to be. U.S. citizens will have to prove that status, and foreigners will have to show a valid visa.
State DMVs will have to verify that these identity documents are legitimate, digitize them and store them permanently. In addition, Social Security numbers must be verified with the Social Security Administration.
What's going to be stored on this ID card?
At a minimum: name, birth date, sex, ID number, a digital photograph, address, and a "common machine-readable technology" that Homeland Security will decide on. The card must also sport "physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication of the document for fraudulent purposes."
Homeland Security is permitted to add additional requirements--such as a fingerprint or retinal scan--on top of those. We won't know for a while what these additional requirements will be.
Why did these ID requirements get attached to an "emergency" military spending bill?
Because it's difficult for politicians to vote against money that will go to the troops in Iraq and tsunami relief. The funds cover ammunition, weapons, tracked combat vehicles, aircraft, troop housing, death benefits, and so on.
What's the justification for this legislation anyway?
Its supporters say that the Real ID Act is necessary to hinder terrorists, and to follow the ID card recommendations that the 9/11 Commission made last year.
It will "hamper the ability of terrorist and criminal aliens to move freely throughout our society by requiring that all states require proof of lawful presence in the U.S. for their drivers' licenses to be accepted as identification for federal purposes such as boarding a commercial airplane, entering a federal building, or a nuclear power plant," Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, a Wisconsin Republican, said during the debate Thursday.
You said the ID card will be electronically readable. What does that mean?
The Real ID Act says federally accepted ID cards must be "machine readable," and lets Homeland Security determine the details. That could end up being a magnetic strip, enhanced bar code, or radio frequency identification (RFID) chips.
In the past, Homeland Security has indicated it likes the concept of RFID chips. The State Department is already going to be embedding RFID devices in passports, and Homeland Security wants to issue RFID-outfitted IDs to foreign visitors who enter the country at the Mexican and Canadian borders. The agency plans to start a yearlong test of the technology in July at checkpoints in Arizona, New York and Washington state.
Will state DMVs share this information?
Yes. In exchange for federal cash, states must agree to link up their databases. Specifically, the Real ID Act says it hopes to "provide electronic access by a state to information contained in the motor vehicle databases of all other states."
Is this legislation a done deal?
Pretty much. The House of Representatives approved the package on Thursday by a vote of 368-58. Only three of the "nay" votes were Republicans; the rest were Democrats. The Senate is scheduled to vote on it next week and is expected to approve it as well.
Is this a national ID card?
It depends on whom you ask. Barry Steinhardt, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's technology and liberty program, says: "It's going to result in everyone, from the 7-Eleven store to the bank and airlines, demanding to see the ID card. They're going to scan it in. They're going to have all the data on it from the front of the card...It's going to be not just a national ID card but a national database."
At the moment, state driver's licenses aren't easy for bars, banks, airlines and so on to swipe through card readers because they're not uniform; some may have barcodes but no magnetic stripes, for instance, and some may lack both. Steinhardt predicts the federalized IDs will be a gold mine for government agencies and marketers. Also, he notes that the Supreme Court ruled last year that police can demand to see ID from law-abiding U.S. citizens.
Will it be challenged in court?
Maybe. "We're exploring whether there are any litigation possibilities here," says the ACLU's Steinhardt.
One possible legal argument would challenge any requirement for a photograph on the ID card as a violation of religious freedom. A second would argue that the legislation imposes costs on states without properly reimbursing them.
When does it take effect?
The Real ID Act takes effect "three years after the date of the enactment" So,sometime in May 2008.
posted by Infinitesimal @ 1/31/2006 06:22:00 PM
9 Comments:
all the info included on the Real ID is stuff we already put on our driver licenses… further, we already need our ID to get on a plane, open a bank account, etc. there’s nothing new or shocking about those aspects… barcodes were on products long before stores put in scanners, but now they all have them, so the issue of a uniform system is also just a matter of time…
however, the involvement of Homeland Security is disturbing… there are a lot of people who show up at the airport only to find out they’re on “no fly” list, and no one will tell them why… what other kind of “no (?)” lists might they come up with and use our IDs to enforce? it could be used to restrict us in many ways, and HS could refuse to tell us why due to “national security” concerns…
there’s also a possibility that the collection of our info from cards could be used for demographic info and marketing (a la “Minority Report”), and result in Real ID spam… we’d need another type of do not call/mail list then…
the “religious freedom” angle is a questionable legal argument… here in Florida we had a Muslim woman who sued to have her driver license picture taken while she was wearing a burka… that meant her face would be almost entirely obscured… she lost, and rightfully so – the whole point of photos on licenses is so that a cop or someone can verify your identity…
in these post-NSA disclosure days, there may be a backlash against any additional intrusions into our privacy… we shall see…
TRUE,
But there is the option to increase the measures as in fingerprints and retnal(!??!) scans.
Mainly, lets say you have 500,000 bucks on you (and you are coming over to my house to share: )
And you have the real ID and you are carrying US American dinero.
A satellite will be able to scan your money and ID and pinpoint the latitude and longitude and direction you are heading.
(Wait, don't come here...)
I know it is tame now, but the point is that it can grow just as silently as it began.
Thanx for reading I won't post any more long ones.
(for awhile)
just hade to set the foundations for Chez Vanille
Also, assuming that it stays as written currently,
This I D is a nationwide phenomenon. It will directly link you to all databases and you must carry it at all times.
Am I feeling secure? Yeah a little I guess, am I creeped out by the potential? You betcha!
/bark bark bark
Hey! you tricked me! there's no applewood smoked bacon frying here. whatareya a vegetarian or somethin'? grrrrrrrrrrrr
seriously. Ditto bogs a bit:
This ID thing has been a part of our landscape already. Like the frog in the pot of water, He doesnt notice he is gradually getting cooked. Or does he?
If you use the little cards that allow you to get discounts at a grocery, or pharmacy they catalog your buying habits, the drugs you take and the frequency with which you take them.
Cameras at the sports stadium for our security, on the highways, in stores and schools. Looking through our baggage for weapons or evidence of ill intent. The gps's in cars. Sure its to help you find your way but also "where you going, bro?" to monitor your travels, your associates.
As Bogs noted to goal is to build a database, a profile of what you are. the archiving of all your internet activities. Unconstitutional stopping of cars and random id and or insurance checks.
The chips in the dog's ear. HOWL! Is our own flesh far behind? Not unless you submit. Ever consider the word "submit" when you enter information into a field to purchase anything or log onto you bank's website to view your accounts? SUBMIT your information or you cannot get what you want, need,desire.
Endless endless monolithic incomprehensible depth of information and down the rabbit hole so far that you pass right thru china and into one of the nebulae you posted.
One thing in the movie the Matrix that always rang true to me. The state sees us as a species of consumers. Our function is to drive the economic engine. That's the dark vision. The clear vision is that nobody ever said there wouldn't be the sorrows but the beauties will always be there to remind us of the precious gift of living and being.
Like the Dalai Lama exiled in India, merrily fixing watches with a sunny attitude, though his monesteries and monks were destroyed in nepal by the ChiComs. He knows he's only passing through this world.
/grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
it's truly scary to think we'll be tracked and possibly pegged without reason, and be subject to further restrictions on our travels and activities... I love being able to pay for gas at the pump, but I want the technology used only to benefit us, not to hinder or compromise us...
don't apologize for long posts... this is your space...
/bark bark bark
Bogs, I am not getting th connection between paying at the pump and the compromise and hinderence.
/grrrrrrrrrrr
it's using an identification card of sorts to do any transaction... that was just an example... but it does track you... they'll often use credit card transactions to track down someone on the run...
My concern with ID cards is that you need ID in the first place to get one. Does anyone else see the Catch 22 of this issue? If you can get fake ID, the type required to gain a Federal ID, then you have a loophole in the system. The only true and effective ID system would be to barcode everybody with a microchip. Of course, it wouldn't take long before somebody found a way of inserting fake micro-chips inside themselves. etc etc etc.
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