The following is a press release mailed by EPIC.org:

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff today released the agency?s final regulations for REAL ID, the national identification system. The law was passed in 2005 and will require the states to make significant changes to the state driver?s license. EPIC and other civil liberties and privacy organizations have objected to the federal identification system, which will include the sensitive information of 245 million license and state ID cardholders across the country.

The proposal has drawn sharp criticism from state governments, members of Congress, civil liberties advocates, and security experts. The Secretary scaled back some of the requirements, reduced the cost, and extended the deadline for state compliance. However, Secretary Chertoff also indicated that the REAL ID card would be used for a wide variety of purposes, unrelated to the law that authorized the system, including employment verification and immigration determination. He also indicated that the agency would not prevent the use of the card by private parties for non-government purposes. As part of the cost-saving effort, Homeland Security has decided not to encrypt the data that will be stored on the card.[...]

Read the - entire press release

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Vermont U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy said the Department of Homeland Security's plan for secure driver's licenses won't improve the nation's security.Leahy said the REAL ID program will result in resentment, litigation and enormous costs that states will be forced to absorb.

Source - WPTZ

Related - Ars Technica: Chertoff on final Real ID rules: "Reconfiguring our society"
Related - Air travelers are stuck in a security showdown

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DHS has released revised REAL ID regulations -- 284 pages long. While according to government jargon these are the "final" regulations, the first deadline for compliance has now been pushed back to December 31, 2009, so there's still plenty of opportunity for Congress to act and change things.

Their press release now spins the system as "preventing document fraud", and talks more about the costs of identity theft than it does about terrorism -- pretty amusing in light of Privacy Rights Clearinghouse's Real ID Act will increase exposure to identity theft. It also trumpets substantial cost savings, which it attributes primarily to revisions giving the states "greater flexibility in issuing licenses to older Americans". Flexibility is a good thing, but it'll be interesting to see what new holes they've introduced for terrorists and identity thieves to exploit.

I'm sure we'll start to see responses from civil liberties groups and others soon; we'll update with links as they come out.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today a final rule establishing minimum security standards for state-issued drivers? licenses and identification cards. The rule sets uniform standards that enhance the integrity and reliability of drivers? licenses and identification cards, strengthen issuance capabilities, and increase security at drivers? license and identification card production facilities. The final rule also dramatically reduces state implementation costs by roughly 73 percent.

[...]

The first deadline for compliance with REAL ID is Dec. 31, 2009. By then, states must upgrade the security of their license systems, to include a check for lawful status of all applicants, to ensure that illegal aliens cannot obtain REAL ID licenses. Some states are expected to be compliant well before that time. Compliance will be needed for access into a federal facility, boarding commercial aircraft, and entering nuclear power plants. Federal agencies will continue to accept licenses for official purposes from residents of states that comply with the law.

Source - DHS Press Release

Related - Final Rule, Part 1 [pdf], Final Rule, Part 2 [pdf]
Related - Privacy Impact Assessment for theREAL ID Final Rule [pdf]

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The Bush administration will release Jan. 11 a revised set of minimum federal standards that states must meet when issuing driver?s licenses and identification cards as mandated by the Real ID Act of 2005, said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.

DHS reviewed approximately 21,000 comments received after first proposing Real ID standards in March 2007. The department submitted the revised rules to the Office of Management and Budget in late November.

Source - FCW

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Maryland legislators want to stop the state Motor Vehicle Administration from trying to comply with federal requirements that they say would burden the state?s treasury and invade residents? privacy.

... ??We?re going to try to keep the state from doing it and spending any more money on [Real ID] consultants until we see what?s going to happen with some of the other states,? said Sen. Jennie M. Forehand (D-Dist. 17) of Rockville, who is drafting a bill to introduce at the beginning of the session in January.

Source - Gazette.net

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