Real ID/National ID Legislation

Begin forwarded message:

From: Barry Steinhardt <[email protected]>
Date: December 12, 2006 6:24:39 AM JST
To: David Farber <[email protected]>
Subject: Real ID/National ID Legislation

Dave,

At last someone in Congress is taking action against the Real ID Act,  
which
would usher in an American National ID.

A bipartisan bill was introduced Friday by Sen. Akaka (D-HI) and Sununu
(R-NH) that would repeal the act's driver's license & identity  
section and
replace it with a "negotiated rulemaking" in which various stakeholders
(including civil liberties & privacy groups) come together to hash out
realistic, doable, privacy-protecting improvements in driver's license
security.  Just such a process was underway before passage of the  
original
Real ID Act shut it down in 2005.

This legislation is a very good start to fixing the "real nightmare"  
that
Real ID is foisting on us -- though we would like to see the fixes go  
even
further.

The ACLU maintains a web site with updated state and national-level
information on Real ID at www.realnightmare.org.The text of the  
legislation
is posted there along with other materials including Senator Akaka's  
floor
statement.

Best regards,

Barry Steinhardt
-- 

Director
ACLU Technology and Liberty Project