What is REAL ID

The Real ID Act is part of the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Tsunami Relief Act (P.L. 109-13) passed on May 11, 2005 by Congress. The Act creates national standards for the issuance of state driver's licenses and identification cards.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the federal agency responsible for implementing the Act. In March 2007 DHS published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (Docket No. DHS-2006-0030), which detailed the minimum standards for driver's licenses and identification cards acceptable by federal agencies for official purposes. The rule, “proposes standards to meet the minimum requirements of the REAL ID Act of 2005, including: information and security features that must be incorporated into each card; application information to establish the identity and immigration status of an applicant before a card can be issued; and physical security standards for locations where driver's licenses and applicable identification cards are issued.”

The rule also solicited comments from states regarding how the proposed regulations would impact states and suggestions states have for how the final rules should be amended. DHS is currently finalizing the regulations and they are expected to be published in the Fall of 2007.