Enforcement of Driver’s License Security Law Passed after 9/11 Delayed Two More Years

In what has become a decades-long joke, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is once again postponing the deadline to fully enforce a law requiring driver’s license security standards designed to prevent another terrorist attack. Unbelievably, among the reasons for the latest delay is that the public expects it based on the government’s history of repeatedly extending enforcement deadlines. The measure, REAL ID Act, was passed by Congress after 9/11 to establish a more secure national system less prone to fraud after several of the hijackers exploited loopholes to obtain dozens of driver’s licenses from various states. The cards allowed the terrorists to take flight lessons and board planes to carry out the 2001 attacks. At the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission Congress passed the REAL ID Act in 2005 and states originally had until 2011 to comply.

Two decades later it has yet to be enforced. The Obama administration tried to drastically weaken the legislation with DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano granting a 20-month extension on the deadline as she worked behind the scenes to undermine the law, asserting that it violates civil liberties and privacy. During the first Trump administration DHS announced that full enforcement of REAL ID would take effect at all federally regulated airports, federal facilities, and nuclear power plants by the fall of 2021 since all 50 states were finally in full compliance with the law. It never materialized, however. Biden got elected and used COVID-19 as an excuse to postpone the security measure’s implementation, extending the deadline by two years to address the lingering impacts of the pandemic on the ability to obtain a compliant license. Less than a year later, the Biden DHS again delayed enforcing REAL ID, claiming that is could cause “undue burden and confusion” for those using licenses that fail to meet federal standards.

Somewhere along the way, May 2025 became DHS’s target date to finally enforce the measure but this month the agency issued yet another two-year extension, giving federal agencies the choice to begin full enforcement by May or implement a “phased enforcement plan” as they see fit. Created after the 2001 terrorist attacks to protect the nation from new and emerging threats, DHS justifies the delay in the Federal Register by explaining that the public may not feel an urgency to obtain a REAL ID-compliant card because there is a history of enforcement deadlines being extended and residents may continue to expect additional extensions. “DHS believes this lack of urgency is likely to delay increased adoption in many States despite best efforts to inform the public, potentially leading to last-minute surges in demand for REAL ID-compliant IDs leading up to the deadline,” DHS writes. The surge could overwhelm states and result in backlogs and delays in REAL ID issuance, according to the agency. “In light of this, DHS anticipates that a significant number of individuals seeking to use their DL/ID for a REAL ID official purpose on and after May 7, 2025, may not have a compliant DL/ID.”

Although the law was enacted two decades ago only around half of the U.S. population with a state-issued driver’s license or identification card is REAL ID-compliant, DHS reveals. As of January 2024, states, territories, and the District of Columbia have issued approximately 162 million REAL ID-compliant cards and data from states indicates that around 124 million noncompliant licenses and ID cards are still in circulation. “DHS recognizes that this could result in a situation where individuals are unable to present a compliant DL/ID to access a Federal facility, board a federally regulated commercial aircraft, or enter a nuclear power plant on a large scale,” the new rule states. “For some agencies, this scenario may raise serious concerns related to security, agency operations, and potential impact to the public.” The newly issued rule recognizes the concerns, DHS writes, and provides flexibility by giving federal agencies another two years to implement REAL ID card-based enforcement “using a phased approach tailored to their specific operations.”

DHS estimates the cost of the rule, over two years, is $1.73 million. The agency fails to offer details but says the expense is related to “facilitating phased enforcement” while offering federal agencies flexibility that may reduce operational disruptions. DHS assures it is working hard to “raise awareness” about the 20-year-old driver’s license security law by, among other things, engaging in a print, social and digital media campaign.