But South Carolina did not request an extension.
In a letter sent Monday to the US Department of Homeland Security, Governor Mark Sanford pointed to a law passed by the General Assembly and signed by him in 2007, which prevents the state from complying with the Real ID Act. Homeland Security has said that an extension request is a form of compliance with Real ID.
Sanford asked the Department of Homeland Security not to inconvenience South Carolinians who fly or enter federal buildings.
“At the end of the day, I’m duty-bound to uphold the laws of our state, which right now say we can’t comply with Real ID,” he said. “ I do fall into the camp that believes Real ID is poor public policy for any number of reasons, and we have some real questions as to whether the benefits in terms of security outweigh the costs in terms of time and money. We think the state legislature did the right thing last year when it said no to Real ID, and I’m going to keep working with Homeland Security and with other governors to keep this law from negatively impacting our state.”
For states without extension requests, the Department of Homeland Security said, “Beginning May 11, 2008, you will not be able to use your state-issued driver’s license or identification card for an official purpose, such as accessing a federal facility, boarding a federally regulated commercial aircraft, or entering a nuclear power plant.”
In 2005, Congress passed the REAL ID Act, which mandates federal requirements for driver’s licenses. The REAL ID Act was added to a bill to provide tsunami relief and military appropriations.
Other forms of identification like a military ID, government identification badge or U.S. passport.
Obtaining a passport requires that an individual be a U.S. citizen or a non-citizen national. It requires proof of U.S. citizenship with a birth certificate or a combination of records, certificates or affidavits that show evidence of a given name and surname, date and place of birth, and the seal or other certification of the office and the signature of issuing official. An applicant must have proof of identity and two recent color photographs. Passport photographs can be made at a post office.
Tommy and April Willis of Simpsonville stood in line at the Airport Post Office in Greer to apply for passports for their children to fly within the U.S. Tommy said he has no problem with obtaining passports for his two children. “I travel a good bit. It is easier to fly with a passport,” he said.
“We may want to go out of the country one day,” April said. “It will be easier to make the decision, if the kids have passports.”
Post office employee Chris Godfrey said he has heard customers expressing similar feelings to the Willis’.
“They have been telling me it is less of a hassle to travel with a passport,” he said.
Even as the deadline for extension request nears, Godfrey said the lines aren’t as long as they were last year when people began hearing more about the REAL ID system.
“The main office in Greenville was taking about 90 applications a day last year, now they are doing about 50,” he said.
With any small price increase, Godfrey said, he does hear people grumbling about paying more.
“The price of postage is going up, so you hear about that,” he said. “But people also complain about the increase in paying for a passport. It’s only a $3 increase total. Actually, $5 less is going to the post office.”
Now, a $75 payment goes to the state department, up from $67. The price to the state is now $25, down from the previous $30.
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