Bad news from California, for Real ID:

A story at latimes.com has some of the harshest words for Real ID that I've seen:

Officials in California say that meeting federal requirements could cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars, and that it could also increase identity theft and lead to invasions of privacy. The act is "a man-made disaster," said state Senate leader Don Perata (D-Oakland).

The state Senate will hold hearings starting Tuesday to examine, among other things, how much implementing the act will cost the state. Congress appropriated $100 million to put the system in place nationwide. But the National Conference of State Legislatures has put the total price tag for states between $9 billion and $13 billion.

"This thing is such a big mess it is difficult to quantify at this point," said Sen. Michael Machado (D-Linden), who will oversee the hearings.