Real ID Act of 2005 - Essay Example

The main advantage is security. The Department of Homeland Security gets the power to decide whether driver’s licenses and ID cards can be used for official purposes. If they are not complying with federal antiterrorist standards, the cardholders will not have access to airplanes, public places, and the courthouse. This means that security measures are on their way. Increasing incidents of terrorism these days have given rise to the need for such security so that citizens may be given complete protection while they travel, work, or enjoy the parks. Such a strict check would discourage terrorists and also illegal immigrants (Quinn, 2012).

Proponents claim the new cards will not be another form of national ID cards because it is optional for a country to adopt them. They are only meant to benefit the country so that it can sort out illegal persons from its citizens. Hence, it is a matter of national security and privacy that makes the proponents of the Act state that it is much needed. We support this fact because a critical analysis makes us believe that American citizens have the right to be informed about who lives around them claiming to be a citizen of the country and that the driver’s licenses contain the correct information, and not some aliases, about the card holders.

However, the number of critics is more than proponents. Critics claim that the Real ID Act of 2005 is invasive. The issuance of the said cards will make us a surveillance society in which everybody is doubted. The incidents of identity theft will also increase since terrorists and illegal immigrants will use their criminal ways to steal identities. The Act will also increase the burden on the taxpayers and the immigrants, because of such a high cost being spent on the issuance of these cards. The administrative burden will increase due to expenses. Privacy will be more at stake if driver’s licenses are turned into national identity documents. State governments will become stressed out because they will have to remake all driver’s licenses, restructure their databases, re-do all documentation, create a data-sharing network requiring technical and professional staff, validate every citizen’s birth certification and immigration documents, and much more. At the individual level, this Act will make citizens pay higher fees for obtaining the cards.

Hence, the  Real ID Act will affect policy development not in a very convincing way because, although it has been passed and signed, its acceptance is not guaranteed. States have shown a severe revolt against this Act. A critical analysis of the pros and cons shows that there is a need for further study of this Act so that its advantages exceed the disadvantages, making it acceptable to common people and the states. Read More