REAL ID Revolt Continues

Ryan Paul at Ars has a write-up on the continuing revolt against the REAL ID Act among the states:

The New Hampshire House of Representatives voted last week to block implementation of the federal government’s controversial Real ID act. Since New Hampshire Governor John Lynch does not intend to veto the Real ID rejection bill, it will pass if approved by the state senate. Characterized by New Hampshire Representative Sherman Packard as “the worst piece of blackmail to come out of the federal government,” the Real ID Act creates a set of uniform standards for state-issued ID cards, and mandates the construction of a centralized national database to store information on American citizens…

Idaho and Maine have already passed bills rejecting implementation of the Real ID act, and similar proposed bills are being evaluated in South Carolina and Arkansas as well as New Hampshire. ACLU state legislative department director Charlie Mitchell says that this is just the beginning of a “tidal wave of rebellion against Real ID.” If enough state governments refuse to comply with the requirements of the Real ID act, it is likely that congress will have to reevaluate the entire plan. “Across the nation, local lawmakers from both parties are rejecting the federal government’s demand to undermine their constituents privacy and civil liberties with a massive unfunded mandate,” says Mitchell. “Congress must revisit the Real ID Act and fix this real mess.”

Indeed. Our own Jim Harper has been on the front lines in this fight, testifying before state legislatures and urging them to reject REAL ID. Perhaps his hard work is paying off.

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