Can you explain what a Real ID is, to help people better understand the significance here?

Real ID really came out of 9/11 and the goal to ensure that when we issue a driver’s license or an identification card to anybody that we really have confirmed their identity, we know who they are. The information on the card is all accurate, so whoever is accepting that card can have a level of confidence, whether that is at the airport, at TSA checkpoints; whether that’s law enforcement on a roadside stop, or anybody using it for identification purposes. It’s really intended to raise the standard and ensure that we have that confidence in the license issuance process.

Who has to actually have one?

We issue Real IDs to anyone, regardless of age, so even young people who are coming in to get that ID card before they’re able to drive. But the requirement from the federal government is you need to have a Real ID in order to use it to for federal purposes. So federal purposes is defined as TSA checkpoints, but also important for us in Maryland, it’s defined as federal buildings that could mean in a federal courthouse, could be in a military installation, it could be any federal building where you have to have that Real ID credential or one of the other documents the federal government has said is acceptable.

How many Marylanders still need to get a Real ID by next Wednesday? How busy do you expect MVA offices to be between now and Wednesday?

That is the great news. We are 99% Real ID compliant in Maryland, and I have to say thank you to our customers and Maryland residents, because they have really responded. More than 4.8 million customers have a Real ID credential in Maryland. You know that by that Real ID star in the corner, which is your indicator, but you can also look it up on your myMVA account and confirm that you’re a Real ID compliant. One percent still needs to get that Real ID, if you’re going to use it again for those federal purposes, including flying. So we are not seeing lines that they are seeing around the country at some DMVs where they do have a lower compliance rate. But I’m really proud, not only of our Maryland residents, but also our great employees, who have made the extra effort to deploy this in a way that’s customer friendly, have done some creative things over the last several years that have gotten us to this point.

What about immigrants? How complicated does that get for them to get a Real ID and make sure that they’re compliant as well?

The federal law allows for individuals who have been granted lawful status to be able to be issued a Real ID, and we have to check a national system to be able to confirm their lawful status. If they’re here for a limited period of time, we can only issue the license or ID card for that specific period of time; but there is a very tried and true process that is authorized under the Real ID federal law, as well as the federal regulations to cover everybody.

Can you be banned from doing some things like traveling, if you don’t have one by next week?

There are some other documents are acceptable. For instance, a U.S. passport, as well as other documents that are listed on the TSA’s website. Our understanding of how they will handle the process is that they will have a secondary screening type of process where they’ll have separate lines for individuals who don’t have Real ID. Obviously, it’s going to take those individuals longer to go through the screening process, so certainly, having the Real ID will make it convenient, which is why we’re really happy that we are at such a high compliance rate here in Maryland. But we do recognize there will be individuals traveling through from other states who may not have that Real ID.

Q&A: Everything you need to know about Real IDs as the deadline nears

It has been decades in the making, but the government deadline to get a Real ID is nearly here.

That deadline is Wednesday. May 7.

The regulations for the new ID have been in place since Congress passed a law back in 2005 tightening the guidelines to board airplanes. The law was first introduced in Congress after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The new IDs have a security-enhanced star in the upper right-hand corner to show they are compliant with the law.

The members of the 9/11 Commission felt having a national standard identification would, hopefully, make it harder for people to get driver’s licenses.

Since 2005, the government has issued several extensions when it comes to implementing the law, but there’s likely no chance the government will issue another extension beyond May 7 for the new IDs.

The IDs — which in many states reflect a new style of driver’s license or ID and are nationally approved — were supposed to go into effect in 2023. But many state government motor vehicle administrations, or DMVs, said they needed more time because of backlogs of paperwork to process the IDs.

Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration Administrator Chrissy Nizer talked to WTOP’s Shawn Anderson and Anne Kramer to explain what the ID does and what you need to do to be compliant before the deadline.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

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Chrissy Nizer tells WTOP what you need to know about Real ID.

Shawn Anderson:
Can you explain what a Real ID is, to help people better understand the significance here?
Chrissy Nizer:
Real ID really came out of 9/11 and the goal to ensure that when we issue a driver’s license or an identification card to anybody that we really have confirmed their identity, we know who they are. The information on the card is all accurate, so whoever is accepting that card can have a level of confidence, whether that is at the airport, at TSA checkpoints; whether that’s law enforcement on a roadside stop, or anybody using it for identification purposes.

It’s really intended to raise the standard and ensure that we have that confidence in the license issuance process.

Anne Kramer:
Who has to actually have one?
Chrissy Nizer:
We issue Real IDs to anyone, regardless of age, so even young people who are coming in to get that ID card before they’re able to drive. But the requirement from the federal government is you need to have a Real ID in order to use it to for federal purposes.

So federal purposes is defined as TSA checkpoints, but also important for us in Maryland, it’s defined as federal buildings that could mean in a federal courthouse, could be in a military installation, it could be any federal building where you have to have that Real ID credential or one of the other documents the federal government has said is acceptable.

Shawn Anderson:
How many Marylanders still need to get a Real ID by next Wednesday? How busy do you expect MVA offices to be between now and Wednesday?
Chrissy Nizer:
That is the great news. We are 99% Real ID compliant in Maryland, and I have to say thank you to our customers and Maryland residents, because they have really responded.

More than 4.8 million customers have a Real ID credential in Maryland. You know that by that Real ID star in the corner, which is your indicator, but you can also look it up on your myMVA account and confirm that you’re a Real ID compliant.

One percent still needs to get that Real ID, if you’re going to use it again for those federal purposes, including flying. So we are not seeing lines that they are seeing around the country at some DMVs where they do have a lower compliance rate. But I’m really proud, not only of our Maryland residents, but also our great employees, who have made the extra effort to deploy this in a way that’s customer friendly, have done some creative things over the last several years that have gotten us to this point.

Anne Kramer:
What about immigrants? How complicated does that get for them to get a Real ID and make sure that they’re compliant as well?
Chrissy Nizer:
The federal law allows for individuals who have been granted lawful status to be able to be issued a Real ID, and we have to check a national system to be able to confirm their lawful status. If they’re here for a limited period of time, we can only issue the license or ID card for that specific period of time; but there is a very tried and true process that is authorized under the Real ID federal law, as well as the federal regulations to cover everybody.

Shawn Anderson:
Can you be banned from doing some things like traveling, if you don’t have one by next week?
Chrissy Nizer:
There are some other documents are acceptable. For instance, a U.S. passport, as well as other documents that are listed on the TSA’s website.

Our understanding of how they will handle the process is that they will have a secondary screening type of process where they’ll have separate lines for individuals who don’t have Real ID. Obviously, it’s going to take those individuals longer to go through the screening process, so certainly, having the Real ID will make it convenient, which is why we’re really happy that we are at such a high compliance rate here in Maryland. But we do recognize there will be individuals traveling through from other states who may not have that Real ID.

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