S.C. granted more time to comply with new ID standards;
1:00 AM
Posted: Tuesday, April 01, 2008
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- South Carolina residents will continue to be able to use their driver's licenses to get on airplanes and into federal buildings, the Department of Homeland Security said Monday as it granted the state an extension to comply with a new federal ID law.
The extension left Maine as the only state without such a deal with the federal government. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff on Monday set a new deadline of 5 p.m. Wednesday to give Maine more time to show progress toward meeting Real ID guidelines, according to U.S. Sen. Susan Collins' office.
Word of the extension for South Carolina came in a letter from the federal agency just six hours after Gov. Mark Sanford issued a litany of complaints about the federal Real ID law. Sanford sent a letter to Chertoff saying he would not seek more time to comply with a law he considers flawed.
Sanford, a Republican, said South Carolina's driver's licenses already are issued with many of the safeguards required by the Real ID law. Like critics in Maine and in other states, Sanford has criticized the cost of and expressed worry over privacy protections.
Sanford also noted he couldn't obey the federal law if he wanted to: A state law enacted last year prohibits South Carolina from following Washington's lead on Real ID.
Chertoff responded later in the day with a letter that said South Carolina appears to be complying with the federal law's standards.
"It seems clear that South Carolina is well on the way to meeting requirements comparable to those required by the final Real ID regulation. I will therefore treat your letter as a basis for an extension and hereby grant it," Chertoff wrote.
Sanford said he was pleased with the decision and called for congressional debate on the law.
Without the extension, South Carolina travelers would have faced additional security checks if they tried to use only their state-issued driver's licenses to board planes or enter federal facilities.
Maine was given an extra two days to decide whether to seek an extension on compliance. It was still unclear Monday whether residents would be allowed to board airplanes and enter some federal facilities using only their state-issued driver's licenses as of May.
Real ID-compliant driver's licenses would have several layers of new security features to prevent forgery. They would also be issued after a number of ID checks, including verification of birth certificates, Social Security numbers and immigration status. Officials acknowledge it will take years to phase in all the different security measures.
The Bush administration says the law, passed after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, will hinder terrorists, con artists and illegal immigrants. Opponents say it will cost too much and weaken privacy protections.
Chertoff has offered to phase in the law's requirements over about 10 years. But with President Bush leaving office in January, a decision to move ahead with Chertoff's plan will rest with the next administration.
By 2014, according to the plan, anyone seeking to board an airplane or enter a federal building would have to present a Real ID-compliant card, except for people older than 50, officials said. That exception would give states more time to get everyone new licenses, and officials say the threat from someone in that age group is much less. By 2017, even people over 50 must have a Real ID-compliant card to board a plane.
The extension left Maine as the only state without such a deal with the federal government. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff on Monday set a new deadline of 5 p.m. Wednesday to give Maine more time to show progress toward meeting Real ID guidelines, according to U.S. Sen. Susan Collins' office.
Word of the extension for South Carolina came in a letter from the federal agency just six hours after Gov. Mark Sanford issued a litany of complaints about the federal Real ID law. Sanford sent a letter to Chertoff saying he would not seek more time to comply with a law he considers flawed.
Sanford, a Republican, said South Carolina's driver's licenses already are issued with many of the safeguards required by the Real ID law. Like critics in Maine and in other states, Sanford has criticized the cost of and expressed worry over privacy protections.
Sanford also noted he couldn't obey the federal law if he wanted to: A state law enacted last year prohibits South Carolina from following Washington's lead on Real ID.
Chertoff responded later in the day with a letter that said South Carolina appears to be complying with the federal law's standards.
"It seems clear that South Carolina is well on the way to meeting requirements comparable to those required by the final Real ID regulation. I will therefore treat your letter as a basis for an extension and hereby grant it," Chertoff wrote.
Sanford said he was pleased with the decision and called for congressional debate on the law.
Without the extension, South Carolina travelers would have faced additional security checks if they tried to use only their state-issued driver's licenses to board planes or enter federal facilities.
Maine was given an extra two days to decide whether to seek an extension on compliance. It was still unclear Monday whether residents would be allowed to board airplanes and enter some federal facilities using only their state-issued driver's licenses as of May.
Real ID-compliant driver's licenses would have several layers of new security features to prevent forgery. They would also be issued after a number of ID checks, including verification of birth certificates, Social Security numbers and immigration status. Officials acknowledge it will take years to phase in all the different security measures.
The Bush administration says the law, passed after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, will hinder terrorists, con artists and illegal immigrants. Opponents say it will cost too much and weaken privacy protections.
Chertoff has offered to phase in the law's requirements over about 10 years. But with President Bush leaving office in January, a decision to move ahead with Chertoff's plan will rest with the next administration.
By 2014, according to the plan, anyone seeking to board an airplane or enter a federal building would have to present a Real ID-compliant card, except for people older than 50, officials said. That exception would give states more time to get everyone new licenses, and officials say the threat from someone in that age group is much less. By 2017, even people over 50 must have a Real ID-compliant card to board a plane.
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