North Dakota is one of a handful of states that has not adopted the federal “Real ID” requirement for drivers’ licenses.
Minnesota has also failed to adopt it. But Minnesota has been denied any waivers from the federal Department of Homeland Security. And there is concern that Minnesotans won’t be able to use their drivers’ licenses to board airplanes.
On the other hand, North Dakota has received a waiver from the federal Department of Homeland Security – that’s good until next October.
"We've taken steps to make sure the actual drivers' license itself, or the DOT-issued ID card, meets very high security standards," said Glenn Jackson, the director of the North Dakota Department of Transportation's drivers' license division. "We have really complied with a lot of the generic requirements real ID encompasses."
Jackson says that means DOT has demonstrated sufficient fraud prevention and credentialing process improvement.
"There's a very high level of certainty that if someone holds a North Dakota credential, it's legitimate," said Jackson.
But when the waiver expires, Jackson says it's anyone's guess whether Homeland Security would grant another waiver.
"The guidance we have received from DHS up to this point tells us that, if they deny a waiver next year, there would be a process by which they would notify us that we would not receive another waiver, and they would establish a timeline for final compliance," said Jackson.
Jackson says he hopes that would be enough time to get the issue before the 2017 Legislature.
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton is urging his Legislature to overturn a ban on real ID, passed in 2007. The North Dakota Legislature passed a resolution also saying this state would not adopt real ID. Jackson says opponents believed it's a step toward a national ID.
