Following the
terrorist attacks of 9/11, several controversial
laws were enacted in order to prevent future
acts of terrorism. One of these laws was the
Real ID Act, which was passed in May 2005. This
law was enacted in order to establish national
standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and
identification cards as well as to make it
extremely difficult for terrorists to use
immigration laws to their advantage.
Currently, forms of identification, such as
driver’s licenses, are issued by the states, not
by the federal government. States set the rules
for what data is found on any identification
card, and the states also maintain databases of
ID card holders.
Beginning on May 11, 2008, however, a federal
agency will not be able to accept any
identification card issued by a state unless it
meets certain requirements. Most of these
requirements are already used by the states. The
main source of controversy regarding the Real ID
Act is the fact that in order to obtain any
state issued ID card the applicant must show
that he or she is lawfully present in the United
States. States will also be required to collect
a variety of data including name, home address,
Social Security number and other identifying
information, and to keep it this information in
a shared database accessible to all states and
the federal government. In addition, if a state
does not comply with the requirements of the
act, it will not be able to receive any sort of
federal funding.
This requirement will make it impossible for
those who are in the U.S. without any legal
immigration status to obtain a state issued
identification card. Without this card, a person
will be unable to obtain automobile insurance,
travel on any airline, apply for Social
Security, or even enter federal buildings.
The Real ID Act also contains provisions in
order to prevent terrorists from using the
asylum process in order to reside in the United
States. The Act sets forth a more rigorous
standard that will make it more difficult for an
applicant to be granted asylum. Furthermore, the
Real ID Act provides that an alien who
contributes funds or other materials to support
a terrorist organization is inadmissible and
deportable unless he did not know, and should
not have known, that he was helping a terrorist
organization.
Congress estimated that the costs of
implementing the Real ID Act would be
approximately $100 million. New studies,
however, suggest that states will incur costs of
more than $11 billion in order to meet the
requirements set forth by the Act.
Many of those in favor of immigration feel that
these new rules put unreasonable burdens on
aliens trying to prove they are escaping from
persecution, and unnecessarily broaden the
definition of terrorist activity such that many
will suffer "guilt by association" even if they
don't support terrorism. In the end, most feel
that the burdens, costs and legality of the Real
ID Act outweigh any potential benefit that would
result from its enforcement. |
