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Why, yet again, the full rollout of REAL ID might be delayed
An example of a California "Real ID" driver's license.
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Courtesy California Dept. of Motor Vehicles
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In the latest hiccup, the Transportation Security Administration has proposed delaying the full implementation of the REAL ID program until 2027. That date will place us more than 20 years into the effort to provide additional air travel security across the country.
Here's what you need to know:
What does it mean to you?
Even if the TSA delays, that doesn't mean you can. The deadline for individual compliance — May 7, 2025 — will remain in place, according to the TSA in a statement released Thursday.
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And the agency warns travelers that they may face delays at airport security checkpoints if they don't have a REAL ID compliant identification or these other acceptable forms of ID by that deadline next year.
Besides air travel, a compliant ID card will also be needed to access certain federal facilities, and entering nuclear power plants.
What TSA wants
TSA is asking for a "phased enforcement approach" to give federal agencies the "necessary flexibility" for enforcement.
Basically, they want some leeway.
Remind me, what was the original deadline?
2008
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Why do we have REAL ID at all?
In the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, then-President George W. Bush signed the "Real ID Act" into law in 2005, requiring Americans to have their ID cards meet new federal security standards.
The law was in response to the fact that 18 of the 19 terrorists responsible for the 9/11 attacks had fraudulent IDs.
Why is REAL ID taking so long?
That deadline has been pushed many times, most recently due to the pandemic and a DMV backlog.
The new guidance proposed by the the TSA this week would equal a delay of 19 years for the program's full implementation.
Of course, Rome wasn't built in a a day. [It took a lot longer than 19 years, too, we looked it up.]
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Where things stand today
Citing Department of Homeland Security data from January, the agency says about 162 million REAL ID-compliant cards have been issued thus far nationwide — that's about 56 percent of those carrying state-issued ID cards who need to be in compliance.
In California, some 17 million residents have obtained their REAL ID as of the beginning of the year, according to state's DMV.
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