Commentary: No more delays: The REAL ID deadline must stick

Sheldon H. Jacobson, Tribune News Service on Apr 23, 2025

Published in Op Eds

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It has become as predictable as the sun rising and setting each day, that the REAL ID requirement for air travel gets delayed.

The current deadline requiring REAL ID for air travel is May 7, with no word from the Department of Homeland Security that it will be moved. The Transportation Security Administration will enforce the deadline, while also giving its officers some flexibility at airport checkpoints.

The REAL ID Act of 2005 has now been on the books for 20 years. It was recommended by the 9/11 Commission in response to the terrorist attacks of 2001. It was designed to secure and harden federal buildings, military installations, nuclear power plants and the air system against terrorist threats.

REAL IDs are now widely available. Department of Defense ID cards, Global Entry cards and U.S. passports all qualify, as do state driver’s licenses and identification cards that are issued meeting the standards of REAL IDs. The latter require a person to provide additional residence information and documentation proof, upgrading the form of identification with an additional layer of security.

Legal immigrants are eligible for a REAL ID. Undocumented immigrants are ineligible, which will keep them from flying — something with which the current administration will presumably be pleased.

So why has there been pushback in the past against mandating REAL IDs for air travel?

From the airlines’ point of view, any obstacle that might prevent ticket purchases represents a loss of revenue. Those lacking REAL ID will be prevented from getting through airport security checkpoints, effectively reducing the pool of potential air travelers.

From the TSA’s point of view, turning people away at airport security checkpoints is an opportunity for chaos and disruption. Airport security checkpoints follow well-defined protocols to maintain consistency across airports. When any disruption occurs, whether with the REAL ID requirement or a prohibited item found in a carry-on bag, the stability of the entire checkpoint operation can be compromised. Even if TSA officers are following the rules by turning passengers away, travelers may respond with anger and bad behavior, creating turmoil around the checkpoint that may affect all travelers.

The data on how well states are doing in issuing REAL IDs suggest that the nation is ready to require them for air travel. All states and the District of Columbia are now REAL ID compliant, so they can issue REAL ID driver’s licenses or identification cards.

However, just because a REAL ID is available does not mean that people are asking for them.

The Department of Homeland Security estimates that 151 million REAL IDs have been issued — enough for just over half of all people eligible. In Illinois, for example, fewer than one-quarter of eligible residents are holding a REAL ID driver license or state identification card.

The bigger issue is that the REAL ID deadline for air travel continues to be “kicked down the road,” with excuses about states not being ready and the COVID pandemic cited to justify delays for two decades. By this point, every possible excuse du jour is available has been used to delay the REAL ID requirement.

Yet another delay would only cast doubt upon whether this law will ever be implemented. The challenge with many such laws is that they have one-size-fits-all requirements that rarely come with the funding necessary to support and enforce, nor the foresight to see the unintended consequences associated with them.

The REAL ID Act is a poster child for such government dysfunction.

What is set to occur on May 7 is the right approach. Keep the deadline in place and accept the short-term negative consequences of enforcing it. The TSA decision to implement a phased process risks that the requirement could eventually be dropped, unnecessarily adding risk to the air travel system.

Any time someone flies commercially out of a U.S. airport, it is impossible to miss signs reminding passengers that the REAL ID requirement deadline for air travel is fast approaching. There was no need to delay its full implementation in the past. Once May 7 arrives, we can get on with the business of secure flying and protecting critical infrastructure, which the REAL ID Act was designed to support.

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Sheldon H. Jacobson, Ph.D., is a professor in the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He has researched risk-based aviation security for more than 25 years, providing the technical foundations for TSA PreCheck. This piece was originally published by The Hill.

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