With the deadline for obtaining a REAL ID just one week away, some who are wary of making the change or who have already done so and now regret their decision may be asking if they can return to alternative forms of ID.
For many across the country, the short answer is yes. Many states will continue to offer non-REAL ID forms of identification that can be obtained the next time someone needs to renew their ID.
However, this comes with the significant caveat that, starting May 7, only REAL ID-compliant forms of identification will be acceptable for federal purposes such as boarding domestic flights or accessing federal facilities.
It has been 20 years since Congress passed the REAL ID Act, mandating states to implement certain minimum-security standards for issuing IDs. A REAL ID is not a national identification card but rather an ID issued by the state in compliance with certain federal standards.
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After a series of delays in implementing the law, the Department of Homeland Security under the Trump administration finally set a deadline for all adults wishing to travel by plane or access federal facilities to obtain a REAL ID-compliant identification card by May 7.
The Trump administration argued that the deadline had already been postponed long enough, asserting that travelers had ample time to gather the necessary documents for the more rigorously verified form of identification.
Some critics, however, have claimed that REAL ID presents a risk to citizens’ privacy, while some on the left have claimed the additional documentation to obtain the card presents an undue difficulty for certain demographics, such as the poor or minorities.
Though it will vary from state to state, if someone with a REAL ID has regrets, all they have to do is opt for another form of identification the next time they are due for renewal.
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However, Simon Hankinson, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, explained to Fox News Digital that the “difference between the REAL ID version and the kind of noncompliant version is not that big.”
Hankinson explained that to obtain a REAL ID, all that is needed is an extra form of documentation beyond what is normally required for an identification card.
“Let’s say I apply for a regular driver’s license. I need proof of residence. I’ve got a bill from my electricity company and my cable company, and I’ve got my birth certificate. Okay, that’s what I give to get my regular I.D. And then in order to get the REAL ID, I have to add a passport or a social security card,” he said.
With this in mind, for many, the supposed benefits of opting out of REAL ID are likely not worth the drawbacks.
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Meanwhile, Hankinson said that the REAL ID’s benefit to national security is significant.
He pointed to the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001, in which several of the al Qaeda terrorists involved had obtained valid state licenses, which were accepted for boarding their flights.
“They did the 911 Commission report, and they realized one of many mistakes that had been made and one of many loopholes was that two of the hijackers, at least the two that the crashed the plane at the Pentagon had been able to get a driver’s license in California,” he said. “As a national security issue, you can’t go to other countries and just get a driver’s license with zero ID. I mean, it just doesn’t work that way. So, I think it’s about time we caught up.”
In response to concerns about security and privacy, Hankinson said the government will have to be held to the highest standards to uphold citizens’ privacy. Still, he compared the risk-reward scenario posed to the nation by REAL ID to nuclear power.
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“If it’s done right, you can mitigate the risks, and you can have, like France, 75, 80 percent of your power from nuclear power plants,” he said. “If you cut corners, and you put the wrong people in charge and you take risks, then you end up with Chernobyl.”
All in all, Hankinson said, “I think really this adds a little bit of hassle … but it gives us a lot in exchange.”
Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
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