Secure Arizona driver's license takes step toward reality

• Arizonans should be able to use their driver%27s licenses to board planes next year
• The state is seeking an extension from a January deadline for a secure ID
• MVD has started work on the new license%2C which will have a gold star

The state is a step closer to producing a driver's license that will allow Arizonans to board airplanes next year.

But the new licenses won't be available for awhile, so the state is asking federal authorities to hold off on enforcing a key portion of the Real ID Act of 2005 until next April. The act set a January deadline for air travelers nationwide to have a more secure ID.

While there is no official confirmation from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, state transportation officials said they are confident Arizonans' current driver's licenses will be sufficient for air travel well into next year.

"It's an understanding that Homeland Security will give us time for full implementation so there won't be a big rush on MVD," said Ryan Harding, a public-information officer for the state Department of Transportation, which houses the motor-vehicle division.

Arizona lawmakers outlawed the issuance of secure identification cards in 2008 over concerns the federal requirements imposed in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks reached too deeply into citizens' private lives. Arizona is one of a handful of states without an ID that meets the federal standards, although nearly two dozen states have been granted extensions to comply with the requirements.

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The requirement has been phasing in since last year, with compliant IDs required to gain entrance to certain federal buildings.

Sen. Bob Worsley, R-Mesa, said he believes the state will have until 2020 to comply, to prevent a flood of license applications at MVD offices from Arizonans who want to fly.

"That would mean, as you move, as you change your address, you can come in and get a compliant license," Worsley said.

At the MVD, Harding said work is underway to create the new licenses. They are expected to be similar to Arizona's existing license, but with updated photos and a gold star to indicate it complies with federal rules. An earlier requirement that the licenses contain an RFID chip, which can be tracked, is no longer part of the new provisions.

Worsley waded into the license dilemma earlier this year as chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee. With Arizona law barring compliance with the Real ID Act, Worsley looked for a workaround to prevent thousands of would-be fliers from being grounded.

His solution was to create an optional license that would meet federal requirements. Arizonans who don't want the more-secure ID can continue domestic air travel with their passports.

The proposal became bait for vote trading in the final weeks of the legislative session, resulting in the requirement that the state first must seek an exemption to the federal requirement.

The machinations left Phoenix resident William Shaw sputtering in disgust.

"That whole thing was a bipartisan fiasco," he fumed. The long-standing ban on complying with the federal law has resulted in confusion and inconvenience for drivers, he said.

His partner, who uses a walking stick, had to get a new driver's license earlier this year when his old one expired. And now he'll have to stand in line, again, to get a compliant license, Shaw said.

Worsley said the hope is people won't have to make back-to-back trips to the MVD to get the ID needed to board an airplane next year if Homeland Security continues to grant extensions.

The agency has done so for 23 states as they work on complying with the federal law, federal records show. Now that Arizona has indicated it will work with the federal program, instead of against it, extension requests should be well-received, Worsley said.

Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-444-8963.

States out of compliance with the Real ID Act:

- Arizona

- Louisiana

- Minnesota

- New Hampshire

- New York

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security