Real ID Act implementation may force state ID issues
27 November, 2012
category: Government
Louisiana is one of seven states that still have state laws prohibiting compliance with the federal Real ID Act of 2005, which may mean that come Jan. 15, the law’s deadline, there are some question as to whether its citizens will be able to use a driver license as identification in airports.
As reported by The Advocate, the Real ID Act of 2005 mandates rules around issuance of state driver’s licenses and official identification documents and the security features these documents must include. Without these security features, the document holders won’t be able to get through security lines at airports and access other federal facilities.
Implementation of this act has been delayed due to many states refusing to comply with the mandates. While most of these states have since decided to follow the law, a few states, including Louisiana, still have laws that go against the federal act.
Should Louisiana not be able to comply with the act, its citizens may be forced to use passports as valid identification at airports. The Transportation Security Administration will then determine whether to accept only passports from these citizens or to subject them to additional screening.
Read more here.