Lawson for Congress

Our federal government passed the REAL ID Act of 2005 (H.R. 418) to force states to adopt universal standards for their drivers’ licenses and state identification cards, and then make that information available to the federal government through a national database. There are many reasons to oppose this plan, some of which are summarized here:

• It’s a national identity system. The standardized national driver’s licenses created by Real ID would become a key part of a system of identity papers, databases, status and identity checks and access control points – an “internal passport” that will increasingly be used to track and control individuals’ movements and activities.
• Will not be effective against terrorism. The fact is, identity-based security is not an effective way to stop terrorism. ID documents do not reveal anything about evil intent – and even if they did, determined terrorists will always be able to obtain fraudulent documents (either counterfeit or real documents bought from corrupt officials).
• Will be a nightmare for state governments. Real ID requires state governments to remake their driver’s licenses, restructure many of their computer databases and other systems, create an extensive new document-storage system, and – perhaps most difficult of all – verify the “issuance, validity and completeness” of every document presented at DMVs. See Real Burdens.
• Will mean higher fees, long lines, and bureaucratic nightmares for individuals. Because Congress ordered but did not pay for these mandates, which will cost states billions of dollars, fees on individuals applying for driver’s licenses will inevitably rise, perhaps steeply. Individuals are also likely to confront slower service, longer lines, and frequent bureaucratic snafus in obtaining these ID cards. Many unlucky individuals will find themselves caught in a bureaucratic nightmare as they run up against the complexities of this law.
• Increased security and ID-theft risks. The creation of a single interlinked database as well as the requirement that each DMV store copies of every birth certificate and other documents presented to it will create a one-stop shop for identity thieves.
• Will be exploited by the private sector to invade privacy. Real ID would make it easy for anybody in private industry to snap up the data on these IDs. Already, bars often swipe licenses to collect personal data on customers – but that will prove to be just the tip of the iceberg as every convenience store learns to grab that data and sell it to data companies for a dime.
• Will expand over time. The Real ID database will inevitably, over time, become the repository for more and more data on individuals, and will be drawn on for an ever-wider set of purposes. Its standardized machine-readable interface will drive its integration into an ever-growing network of identity checks and access control points – each of which will create new data trails that will in turn be linked to that central database or its private-sector shadow equivalent.

Even more interesting, this national database will be implemented and managed by a private contractor:

The organization set to profit from the REAL ID Act is the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. According to its web site, AAMVA “is a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization striving to develop model programs in motor vehicle administration, police traffic services and highway safety. The association also serves as an information clearinghouse in these areas, and acts as the international spokesman for these interests.”

AAMVA is the most likely organization to run the massive new databases which will be required for the REAL ID Act. It represents all 50 U.S. states and 10 Canadian provinces.

And now, AAMVA has hired Brian Zimmer, a well-connected House staffer who is a major proponent of REAL ID.

AAMVA has been at this for a very long time, notes Jim Harper, director of information policy studies for the Cato Institute.

AAMVA is well recognized (by those who care to follow these issues) as a proponent of driver regulation, national IDs, and even internationally uniform ID systems. Since at least the late 1930’s AAMVA has been pushing regulatory control of drivers and driving. As I note in my book, Identity Crisis, “Before September 11, 2001, AAMVA promoted a national identification card as a solution to illegal immigration. After September 11, 2001, it promoted a national identification card as a solution to terrorism. If national identification cards are a hammer, AAMVA sees every public policy problem as a nail.”

AAMVA collects about $1 per driver per year (roughly $13 million) for its part in administering the Commercial Drivers License Information System. AAMVA would make much more as the administrator of databases required by the REAL ID Act. — Jim Harper, Cato Institute

I strongly oppose REAL ID because it is an un-Constitutional federal usurpation of state responsibilities, and a massive corporate welfare scheme that does not protect us from those with evil intent. In fact, it makes each us of less safe by reducing our privacy and increasing the risks of identity theft or mis-identification when errors occur in this new, singularly-important system.

The good news is that many states are pushing back against this un-Constitutional plan, as documented here:

Following is a list of states where legislation against Real ID is currently active, with links to the relevant legislation and, where available, its status. The map below shows the introduction and passage of anti-Real ID bills in last year’s legislative session. It will be updated as new bills are introduced in the 2008 session. More information about Real ID in each state is available by clicking on the state name. This list will be constantly changing as more states act, and it will be updated as quickly as possible. View the video short, “Real ID: A Real Nightmare,” here.

We need to fight the REAL ID at both the federal and state level. As your Congressman, I will work to repeal the REAL ID Act. At the state level, each of us needs to contact our elected representatives and request the introduction of legislation to opt-out of REAL ID.

One common misconception among our state representatives is that we “need” REAL ID to prevent our giving drivers’ licenses to illegal aliens. As a state, we are perfectly capable of implementing our own system to determine who meets our requirements to drive a car. Using our driver’s license as a national identification card is completely separate, and something that we must emphatically reject.

Seventeen states have already opted-out of REAL ID, with over 15 others in progress. Why are we not participating?

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 7th, 2008 at 9:43 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.