(Oklahoma) The REAL ID Act of 2005 was enacted by the federal government and signed into law byPresident George W. Bush on May 11, 2005. Included in the act were minimum securitystandards for state driver licenses and identification cards. One of the goals of the Act is tomake state driver licenses more secure and less susceptible to counterfeit or forgery. The REALID Act prohibits federal agencies from accepting a state-issued driver license or identificationcard for any official purpose unless the card or license is issued by a state that meets therequirements set forth in the Act.
In November 2007, the Oklahoma Legislature enacted section 6-110.3 of Title 47 of theOklahoma Statutes, prohibiting the Department of Public Safety from implementing anyprovisions of the REAL ID Act of 2005. Currently, identification cards and driver licenses issuedby the Department of Public Safety do not meet the Act’s requirements; however, many of theAct’s requirements are best practices in the driver license industry, and many were alreadybeing implemented by the Department prior to passage of the REAL ID Act. By followingindustry best practices, Oklahoma currently meets 65 percent of the components necessary tobe considered REAL ID compliant. However, under current state law, the Department is stillunable to meet all of the components.
What this means for Oklahomans is that their state-issued identification card or driver licensemay no longer be accepted by federal agencies for official purposes, such as gaining access tofederal facilities, access to military installations, or boarding federally regulated commercialaircraft.
As of this date, some federal facilities are already refusing to accept cards or licenses from noncompliantstates. On the other hand, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) saysthat it will continue to accept driver’s licenses and state-issued identification cards fromOklahoma and other non-compliant states at least until 2016. The Department of Public Safetyis currently working with the Oklahoma Governor’s Office, the Oklahoma Legislature, membersof Oklahoma’s Congressional delegation, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to finda solution that will prevent Oklahomans presenting an Oklahoma identification card or driverlicense, from being denied access to federal facilities or denied the ability to board commercialaircraft. The Department has sought additional time to come into compliance as well asclarification on the timelines and restrictions associated with the REAL ID Act’s requirements.
Until the Department of Public Safety is authorized by Oklahoma law to issue identificationcards and driver licenses that meet the requirements of the REAL ID Act, Oklahomans shouldplan accordingly to obtain alternate forms of identification that will permit them access tofederal facilities or board commercial aircraft. For more information on the REAL ID Act, toinclude information on acceptable forms of identification for boarding aircraft, citizens shouldvisit the official website of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at https://www.dhs.gov/real-id-public-faqs . Although Oklahoma is listed on the U.S. Departmentof Homeland Security website as a compliant state, citizens should be mindful that Oklahomahas only been granted an extension of the date to comply, but that extension expires on October 10, 2015.
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