Real ID Rebellion (a Yahoo group):

Here's a plce to discuss RealID: Come to the real_ID_rebellion at Yahoo. Here's a quote from the group's founder:

My daughter, 23, says I'm over reacting . . . Well, yeah! I think we should all over react a little! I'm 45, and remember the Cold War days, George Orwell, and also the patriotism that is no longer taught in our private government, oops, sorry, our "public" schools. I remember my history of the founding of our country, I remember the reason our ancestors and grandparents fought and died for our country, and I'm not going to sit still for this!

The UK has a much better plan (and it still sucks):

This article at CR80 News compares efforts in the USA, UK and OZ to have a Real ID. The UK has sensibky made this a central government responsibility - the same office will process passports. Some quotes about the UK effort:

Getting the national ID card through Parliament became a little more difficult with a report issued in June by the London School of Economics and Political science. Titled "The Identity Project: An Assessment of the UK Identity Cards Bill and its Implications," the report says that the program would be too expensive and is likely to cost nearly double the $10.5 billion the government initially projected.

The project has too many purposes. According to researchers, "evidence from other national identity systems shows that they perform best when established for clear and focused purposes. The UK scheme has multiple rather general rationales, suggesting that it has been 'gold-plated' to justify the high tech scheme."

"No scheme on this scale has been undertaken anywhere in the world. Smaller and less ambitious schemes have encountered substantial technological and operational problems that are likely to be amplified in a large-scale national system. The use of biometrics creates particular concerns, because this technology has never been used at such a scale."

There's an extra concern here - will Britain's implementation push the EU to similar ID cards? Will the EU push back against what the UK is doing?

The No Document Left Behind Act!

"We told you so!" says this editorial in the New Hampshire Keene Sentinel (at SentinelSource.com). They wrote about this act back in May, and now people in NH are realizing what they've gotten into. RealID is called the "No Document Left Behind Act" because of the extensive, onerous paperwork it will require. They point out that in 2008, many people will pay $100 for a passport (in order to get a license) and then much more than the current $50 fee to get the license.

This editorial may also have hit on a serious catch-22 in the RealID law for foreigners. State clerks will have to verify their date of birth, status, etc., but are not allowed to use any foreign documents other than a passport in the process. Some quotes:

Already, N.H. Emergency Services Director Bruce Cheney is recommending that all residents of New Hampshire get passports and birth certificates right away. If you wait until 2008, the delays could be horrendous, and many people would not be able to drive in the interim.

Oh, and the law says the state must make copies of each document presented in support of a driver’s license application and keep those copies filed away digitally for 10 years. That will put all our personal information in one neat database for identity thieves to find. And, if credit-card companies can’t protect such things, how well do you suppose our state government will do? Three times as many people?

Today, the Keene motor-vehicle substation processes licenses only on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. It will surely need more hours to deal with all the new requirements. And applicants standing in line will need shelter and rest rooms. There will have to be chairs for elderly and disabled drivers. Four times as many people?

Although the law imposes consequences if a state refuses to adopt these procedures ... those would be less onerous than the law itself. ... One way or another, the Live Free or Die state should join the rebellion.

Down Under, Real ID is a Furphy:

Australia is wrestling with its own plans for a real ID card, and most of the same concerns are surfacing there. A column at onlineopinion by Peter Chen discusses whether the card is anti-terrorist, what privacy concerns it raises, whether it might be secure, and whether it's redundant to add biometric dat to the card. Here's a quote:

The sad truth of the matter is that the ID card is somewhat of a furphy. As Amanda Vanstone has made clear, the card becomes nothing more than a meaningless piece of plastic in our already over-stuffed wallets if there is no biometric database sitting behind the system. What Vanstone does not elucidate, however, is that with a biometric database the card is redundant.

Why carry a card when you can use facial recognition or fingerprints to provide identity without the plastic? The power of the system is not in a card that can be lost, stolen, or duplicated. It’s in the network that sits behind government firewalls. The Commonwealth recognises that it is easier to suggest this debate is about giving us all another card than saying that they’d like to sample everyone’s DNA. While governments like to be personable, most Australians might find that a little too intimate.

A view from the other side:

I agree with those who say that the coming RealID license system will be insecure and vulnerable to both hacks and villainous insiders. But there are those who expect RealID to be a secure system that protects us from terrorists. Securelicense is one of these sites, and you might find it interesting to look at. The site's creator is Amanda Bowman. Here's a quote:

Days after President Bush signed the Real ID Act into law, though, some state legislators and governors began making noises that they would not comply with the law. Montana legislators even passed a resolution to that effect. Claiming ''state's rights'' and the invasion of ''Big Brother,'' they resolved to fight Real ID in the courts, once the specific recommendations are issued by the Department of Homeland Security, which should be soon. They, in effect, announced their intention to conduct business as usual, security be damned.

If any of these states is successful, the entire nation will remain at risk, because we are only as strong as our weakest link. Licenses issued by Florida, New Jersey and Virginia, after all, were used to kill Americans in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. Headstrong governors must be made to realize this -- that a license issued to a terrorist in any state jeopardizes citizens in every state.

But frankly, we have no assurance that RealID will make it harder for terrorists to get licenses. Especially if they are US citizens. Or if they are good hackers. Or if they bribe one of the hundreds of new employees who will be hired to process licenses.

One State: $250 million

Several news stories are quoting an estimate that Washington State will spend $250 million in the first five years to implement RealID. Here's one, a commentary at SeattlePi NwSource. "[Gigi] Zenk says Washington state alone is looking at $250 million in expenses over the next five years." (Elsewhere, a story says Washington State expects to hire 500 more employees to operate RealID.) A quote:

Nobody likes getting pushed around, not by a playground bully, and certainly not by the federal government.
Not surprising, the Bush administration doesn't care, forcing states to adopt unwanted -- perhaps unnecessary -- programs.

Feds Infringing States Rights: $13 billion, perhaps?

Here'a an AP story by Rachel la Corte, published at OregonLive. "States are continuing to see their authority stepped on by the federal government ..."

Let's take a moment to remember that Republicans are supposed to believe in States Rights, and yet RealID is only one of many laws passed by the present administration that allow Federal jurisdiction over what used to be states issues. The No Child Left Behind Act is another well-intentioned example.

The story reports that the "National Conference of State Legislatures, a bipartisan group meeting in Seattle this week, documents pending legislation that pre-empts state authority, a problem that many say has increased in the past few years."

Some NCSL officials apparently guesstimate the cost of RealID as $13 billion (We started with estimates in the low $100 millions, and we still don't know exactly what the states have to do yet.) A quote:

Sen. Michael Balboni, R-N.Y., noted that states were working with the federal government on creating standards, but that they were ultimately left out of the law that passed.
"The REAL ID Act handcuffs state officials with unworkable, unproven, costly mandates that compel states to enforce federal immigration policy rather than advance the paramount objective of making state-issued identity documents more secure and verifiable," he said in prepared remarks at a news conference announcing the report.

Tick, Tick, Tick, (105 days lost so far):

Any decent software developer will tell you that states cannot really implement RealID until they know the specifics. EXACTLY what has to go on these licenses, what has to be verified, and how must the states interconnect their data bases?

Until the Federal Government defines these specs, time's a-wasting. And it's likely that the first published specification will have problems and need revision before computer design can really begin.

The bill was passed on May 11. So far: 105 days lost to design and development!

Illinois plans to implement the act:

cyberdriveillinois reports that "Secretary of State Jesse White appointed his Inspector General Jim Burns to chair a committee that will recommend changes Illinois should make to comply with a new federal law that orders every state to require, verify and store specific identification documents before issuing drivers' licenses." They expect that "the Secretary of State's office will need to make some procedural and legislative changes to comply with various components of the law. Those changes include verifying all identification documents presented by applicants with the original issuing agencies and then scanning and storing the documents electronically."

It may be interesting to follow the news in Illinois, as they are likely to realize (gradually) that they are getting into something rather big. But they do know it's going to cost them:

"This is a costly mandate that the federal government has placed on the states," White said. "I will be lobbying for federal funding to help make these changes. ..."

The best overview of RealID yet: Why it's a mess:

Anita Ramasastry, a FindLaw columnist, has a fine overview of the problems with RealId at CNN's website: "Why the 'Real ID' Act is a real mess". Correction: the article probably appeared here on Findlaw first. She notes that "Hearings might have revealed that Real ID is going to create many headaches and nightmares for U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents and state governments, which already labor under an unfunded mandate." Please read the entire article for her insights and suggestions. Some more quotes from this fine article:

More than 600 organizations have expressed concern over the Real ID Act. Organizations such as the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, the American Library Association the Association for Computing Machinery, the National Council of State Legislatures, the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the National Governors Association are among them.

Addresses cannot be P.O. boxes. That will predictably cause problems for people who may fear for their personal safety -- including judges, police officers or domestic violence victims ...

States will be responsible for verifying these documents. That means that, when it comes to birth certificates and other documents, they probably will have to make numerous, onerous confirming calls to state and municipal officials or companies to verify the documents authenticity since it's easy to fake paperwork. In addition, they will have to cross-check Social Security numbers, birthdates,and more against federal databases.

Even with current, unlinked databases, thieves increasingly have turned their attention to DMVs. Once databases are linked, access to the all-state database may turn out to be a bonanza for identity thieves.

It's that "machine-readable technology" requirement, along with the possibility of Homeland Security add-ons, that raises the most serious risk that the Real ID Act will cause privacy violations. (The fact that the technology must be "common" also raises the already-high risk of identity theft.)

Unreasonable , unfunded, unworkable, counterproductive!

A news story at Public Cio tells us that after the gvernors conference in Iowa, governors are waiting for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to answer several questions about Real ID so they can determine its impact.

The USA issues 227 million driver's licenses. (That means the federal government has offered the states about 43 cents per license to defray the cost of RealID.) The story says that governors determined that "the Real ID Act contains unreasonable burdens and unfunded mandates that are unworkable and counterproductive to its goals."

The governors want to know how soon they have to reissue all 227 million licenses. (Actually there will be more millions, because if you don't drive but want to fly, you need a license.)

Official warns of huge impact:

Here's a story from the CHAMPAIGN-URBANA News_Gazette-online. Jim Burns, inspector general for the Illinois secretary of state, heads up a committee within that office to look at issues related to the Real ID. He's looking; he assumes the feds will require RealID to happen; but he expects a huge impact on everyone. Some quotes:

The federal law requires the state to verify the documents and then scan and store them electronically ... That will mean new computer systems and may require additional employees.

Illinois has 8.5 million registered driver's licenses. They would all be required to get new identification, along with people who want to travel on airplanes who don't have a driver's license now. Burns said he believes there will be a staggered or phased implementation, rather than requiring millions of drivers to get new licenses at once.

Illinois will have to be able to link to other states and agencies to share and verify information, according to Burns. That would be just one aspect of costs for the new system

"Our attitude is it's going to be done," Burns said. The feds have said it's going to be done. It's being done from a security standpoint, so we aren't going to sit by and wait. Let's buckle down and get going."