Sophia Cope: "The Wrong Way to Fix REAL ID"

Sophia Cope of the Center for Democracy and Technology has submitted a post entitled The Wrong Way to Fix REAL ID.

She notes that Susan Colling (R-Maine) has submitted an "amendment (S. 563) to the 9/11 recommendations bill (S. 4)...." that seeks to address the issue.

CDT commends Senator Collins for wanting the DHS regulations to “include procedures and requirements to protect the Federal and State constitutional rights, civil liberties, and privacy rights of individuals.” However, this shifts responsibility for resolving the REAL ID controversy from Congress to a federal agency. The REAL ID Act itself is inherently flawed: for example, it mandates the creation of a nationwide electronic network for the sharing of personal information, and the retention of copies of highly sensitive documents (such as birth certificates, social security cards, passports, and utility bills); and it does not address the use of the new cards or the collection of personal information. The REAL ID Act also contains no mention of “privacy” anywhere in the statute. It is inappropriate to expect administrative regulations to make up for these statutory deficiencies.

Ms. Cope has other good points about this issue. Check them out here.