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REAL ID Act of 2005

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The REAL ID Act was passed by Congress in 2005 and signed into law by President George W. Bush on May 11, 2005. The law introduced new requirements for accepting asylum applicants and expanded the grounds for inadmissibility into and removal from the United States based on terrorism-related activity. The law also established new national standards for state-issued identification, such as driver's licenses, and prohibited the acceptance of non-compliant IDs for boarding airplanes, entering nuclear facilities, and conducting other official federal business. The law also required states to agree to share driver's license data across the country.

HIGHLIGHTS
  • Implementation of the REAL ID Act was slated to be phased in through four stages, although enforcement of the legislation was delayed multiple times.[1]
  • On October 9, 2013, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that phased-in implementation would begin on January 20, 2014.[1]
  • As of March 2017, 25 states were out of compliance with the REAL ID Act. Twenty had been granted an extension to come into compliance.

    • Background

    The National Conference of State Legislatures identified the impetus behind the REAL ID Act as the September 11 terror attacks:[2]

    “ While prior to September 11th, states were already implementing numerous security measures to counter issues with counterfeit driver's licenses (DLs) and identification cards (IDs) and dated licensing procedures, after September 11th states accelerated these efforts to ensure that their DLs/IDs were secure.[3] ”
    —National Conference of State Legislatures

    In the month following the attacks, the White House released a report recommending minimum standards for driver's licenses in order to support national security. In 2004, the 9/11 Commission recommended the establishment of secure identification standards.[2]

    These conditions led to the enactment of the REAL ID Act, the stated purpose of which was to "establish and rapidly implement regulations for State driver's license and identification document security standards, to prevent terrorists from abusing the asylum laws of the United States, to unify terrorism-related grounds for inadmissibility and removal, and to ensure expeditious construction of the San Diego border fence."[4]

    Legislative history

    The REAL ID Act of 2005 was introduced as HR 418 in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representative Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) on January 26, 2005. Its stated purpose was to "establish and rapidly implement regulations for State driver's license and identification document security standards, to prevent terrorists from abusing the asylum laws of the United States, to unify terrorism-related grounds for inadmissibility and removal, and to ensure expeditious construction of the San Diego border fence."[4]

    The House passed the bill by a vote of 261-161 on February 10, 2005. The text was then added as Division B to the end of HR 1268, which passed the House 388 - 43. The bill then passed the Senate by a vote of 99-0 on April 21, 2005. HR 1268 was then moved to conference committee; the House agreed to the conference report 368-58, and the Senate agreed 100-0.[5]

    President George W. Bush signed the legislation into law on May 11, 2005. It was set to be implemented in multiple phases over several years.[5][1]

    Provisions

    Changes to immigration law

    Title I of the REAL ID Act made changes to immigration law, primarily to admissions based on asylum and grounds for inadmissibility or removal.[6]

    The law amended Title 8 of the United States Code to allow the secretary of homeland security to grant asylum; previously, only the attorney general had such authority. The law also required asylum applicants to prove that they would be persecuted in their home country for their race, religion, nationality, social group, or political opinion. Under the law, an asylum applicant could meet this burden of proof only by providing testimony determined to be credible, persuasive, and fact-specific. The law required asylum applicants to provide corroborating evidence at the request of the person in charge of evaluating the credibility of applicant testimony. In the event that an applicant could not obtain such evidence because it would require leaving the United States, the law stated that the applicant was not excused from meeting the burden of proof. The law listed the following factors to be taken into consideration, at a minimum, when evaluating credibility:[6]

    • the individual's demeanor and candor
    • the inherent plausibility of the testimony
    • consistency between multiple statements
    • internal consistency of each statement
    • consistency of statements with corroborating evidence
    • any inaccuracies or falsehoods, even when not central to the testimony

    The law also expanded the grounds for inadmissibility for entry into the United States to include the following terrorism-related conditions:[6]

    • representing a terrorist organization or a group that endorses terrorist activity
    • belonging to a designated terrorist organization
    • belonging to an organization that commits specified acts of terrorism
    • endorsing terrorist activity
    • receiving military training from a terrorist organization

    The law also made individuals eligible for removal from the United States if they could be deemed inadmissible for entry on these terrorism-related grounds.

    Driver's licenses and identification

    Title II of the REAL ID Act established minimum standards for state-issued driver's licenses, including the incorporation of specified information, machine-readable technology, and anti-fraud security measures. The law prohibited the acceptance of non-compliant IDs for boarding airplanes, entering nuclear facilities, and conducting other official federal business.[6]

    The law also outlined minimum standards for the issuance of driver's licenses and other identification. It required more proof of and verification of identity, proof of legal residence in the United States, and, for individuals temporarily present in the country, the issuance of documentation that is only valid for the length of their stay.[6]

    In order to continue to receive certain federal funds, the REAL ID Act also required states to agree to share driver's license data across the country.[6]

    According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 25 states were out of compliance with the driver's license requirements of the REAL ID Act as of March 2017. Twenty of those states had been granted an extension to come into compliance. The table below provides a list of the states that are out of compliance with the REAL ID Act. Click [show] on the teal bar to view the list.[7]

    Border security

    Title III of the law required the Department of Homeland Security to evaluate border security vulnerabilities and the technology and personnel required to address them. The law also required the department to develop a pilot program on the use of ground surveillance, such as video cameras, sensors, and motion detection, along the border. The department was also required to improve communication between federal agencies and state and local agencies on border security matters.[6]

    See also

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 National Conference of State Legislatures, "Countdown to REAL ID," October 14, 2016
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 National Conference of State Legislatures, "The History of Federal Requirements for State Issued Driver’s Licenses and Identification Cards," accessed March 13, 2017
    3. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
    4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Congress.gov, "H.R.418 - REAL ID Act of 2005," accessed March 13, 2017
    5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Congress.gov, "H.R.1268 - Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Tsunami Relief, 2005," accessed March 13, 2017
    6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 Congress.gov, "Summary: H.R.418 — 109th Congress (2005-2006)," accessed March 14, 2017
    7. ↑ U.S. Department of Homeland Security, "Current Status of States/Territories," accessed March 22, 2017
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