Washington, D.C. - Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) declared a victory for taxpayers and drivers today after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released proposed regulations for personal identification that do not mandate the use of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology.  The REAL ID Act requires DHS to establish federal standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards. 

To meet the REAL ID requirement that licenses be “machine readable,” DHS recommends the use of 2D bar codes, the technology that most states already use to make secure cards at a reasonable cost.  No state currently uses RFID, an automatic identification method that relies on storing and remotely retrieving data using radio waves. 

CAGW has released two reports, Real ID: Big Brother Could Cost Big Money and Border Security: PASS Card Fails on Cost, Privacy, criticizing RFID-based identification.  The total cost of issuing new licenses with RFID chips could reach $17.4 billion and the average cost of a license would shoot from between $10 to $20 to more than $93.  In contrast, the National Conference of State Legislatures estimated that it would cost $9 to $13 billion to implement REAL ID Act regulations based on current licensing techniques.  RFID also threatens privacy, raising the possibility of identity thieves remotely accessing their victims’ personal information with a hand-held scanner.

In December 2005, CAGW delivered more than 5,200 petitions from its members to DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff urging DHS not to include RFID chips in its REAL ID regulations.  CAGW also sent a letter to Secretary Chertoff on behalf of a coalition of 21 organizations opposing RFID.   

The REAL ID Act was buried in an $82 billion military spending bill and passed without any congressional debate in May 2005.  On January 25, Maine became the first state in the nation to demand repeal of the law and others are considering similar legislation. 

“CAGW activists successfully thwarted RFID-based licenses, saving taxpayers $4.4 to $8.4 billion and heading off a grave risk to privacy.  However, REAL ID remains problematic.  It is an unfunded mandate on the states, and despite DHS statements to the contrary, moves the country closer to a national ID card,” Schatz concluded.   

Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, mismanagement and abuse in government.