Do we even need this? Lawmakers get real about REAL ID mandate starting today
The United States has had 20 years to roll out REAL ID.
Starting today, passengers must have a REAL ID or another accepted form of identification, like a passport, to travel domestically in the country.
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill spoke with Fox News Digital about how their home states implemented the final phase of REAL ID, as President Donald Trump 's administration signaled there would be no deadline extensions.
"I had to go through all that to get it on my license, and that was a year or two ago," Rep. Diana Harshbarger, R-Tenn, said. "Tennessee put that into effect a long time ago. If there's a hard deadline now, people better get on the stick."
While some Republican lawmakers expressed concern to Fox News Digital about their constituents not knowing or being able to get a REAL ID in time, most agreed REAL ID was a step in the right direction for national security.
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Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., called REAL ID a "better way to prove who you are, and make sure there's less fraud in the country."
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"It's important that every state does the same thing," Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said. "We can't have some states doing one thing, some states doing the other. This is the United States of America, the last time I looked. We're going to do it. Let's all do it the same, do it the right way, take care of business, and go from there."
Rep. Jeff Crank, R-Colo., told Fox News Digital that Colorado has not had any problems with REAL ID, adding, "Colorado's gotten a lot of things wrong, but on REAL ID, I think they did a good job."
Other states have not been as successful in their REAL ID rollouts.
Kentucky lawmakers, including Kentucky's Senate Transportation Committee Chair Jimmy Higdon and 27 state Senate leaders, sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on April 17 requesting a delay on REAL ID enforcement, citing concerns among Kentuckians "who are still unable to access driver's licensing services due to limited appointment availability and long lines for walk-ins."
The Trump administration confirmed in a statement to Fox News Digital that states would need to comply by the May 7 deadline, despite Kentucky's delay request.
"What I'm concerned about is that constituents who may not be aware of the REAL ID requirement or that didn't have time to get their REAL ID, will show up at an airport to go on a flight and realize they can't fly domestically anymore without that REAL ID," Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., said.
Malliotakis said she has been trying to get the word out to her community that passengers will either need to get a REAL ID or travel with their passport starting Wednesday.
"I think the government needs to be more proactive and do advertisements. I would urge DHS and TSA to be doing that to get the word out there, so people can get their REAL ID as soon as possible," she added.
However, Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., took the criticism a step further, telling Fox News Digital that REAL ID "has not really been talked a whole lot about in Congress, and we're starting to get questions from constituents."
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"We want to make sure that people have the ability to make accommodations, but the question is whether or not we even need this. We haven't even had that debate in Congress. We should," Schmitt added, despite Congress passing the REAL ID Act in 2005.
Rep. Dale Strong, R-Ala., had a different take. "Get the yellow star on your driver's license, it'll help you down the road."
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