State-issued driver’s licenses would become de-facto national identity cards under a bill to standardize those documents introduced in the House Wednesday by two Virginia Congressmen.
The Driver’s License Modernization Act (HR-4633) would require states to incorporate the motoring history of a person–including traffic violations, license suspensions, a fingerprint and other related personal data–on a computer chip that is embedded in the document.
The bill also requires states to develop a universal driver’s license within five years and to tie their computerized motor vehicle databases together at a cost not to exceed $315 million.
The measure, sponsored by Reps. Jim Moran (D-VA) and Tom Davis (R-VA) would limit access to the information in the document to law enforcement authorities without permission, prohibits anyone else from accessing the data under the threat of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of at least $25,000.
Noting the ease by which one of the hijackers of a plane that crashed into New York’s World Trade Center on Sept. 11 was able to obtain a New Jersey driver’s license, Moran explained in a statement that the bill would help prevent fraud, falsification and “future acts of terror.”
He added, “As long as possession of a valid driver’s license is take as unquestionable proof of identity for the distribution of other important documents, like passports, Social Security cards and employee ID cards, the lack of uniform standards and a unique biometric identifier for state-issued driver’s licenses will remain a problem.”
There was no immediate comment from the Direct Marketing Association on the measure. But the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center said in statements that they opposed it because it would turn a driver’s license into a national identity card.
As Moran and Davis were introducing the bill, the ACLU and several privacy groups and Washington-based think tanks told a Congressional subcommittee of their support for the Federal Agency Protection of Privacy Act (HR-4561) introduced two weeks ago by Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA).
While endorsing the measure, requiring all federal agencies to publicly disclose how any new rule or regulation they propose would affect the personal privacy of Americans, several of the groups suggested amendments that would limit both the use and sharing of any personally identifying information that is obtained.
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