Sam E. Rohrer -- REAL ID: Connecting the dots to an = International ID

REAL = ID: CONNECTING=20 THE DOTS TO AN INTERNATIONAL=20 ID

By Representative = Sam E.=20 Rohrer

August 24,=20 2008
NewsWithViews.com

History=20 offers many examples of societies which have sought to increase = security=20 by sacrificing freedom. America itself provides many pertinent = instances.=20 However, our founding fathers have not left us without wisdom on = this=20 issue. Ben Franklin has famously stated, "People willing to trade = freedom=20 for temporary security deserve neither and will lose both." REAL = ID=20 undoubtedly exemplifies a scenario in which a difficult tension = exists=20 between freedom and security. By commandeering every state's = driver's=20 license issuing process, REAL ID threatens the results warned by = Franklin=20 - loss of both freedom and security. It has become the biometric=20 enrollment phase of a plan to implement a terribly invasive = tracking=20 system, largely without public knowledge or approval. REAL ID is = merely=20 the current face of a far larger, international government and = private=20 economic effort to collect, store, and distribute the sensitive = biometric=20 data of citizens to use for the twin purposes of government = tracking and=20 economic control. At issue are much more than standardized or=20 non-duplicative driver's licenses. This effort extends worldwide,=20 threatening every person alive today. Although very legitimate = security=20 concerns exist in this age of terrorism, this Act extends far = beyond=20 terrorism prevention or protection of the innocent. Keeping that = broad=20 picture in mind, let us move to some background behind the face of = REAL ID=20 implementation in America.

The REAL=20 ID Act passed Congress in 2005 buried in a "must-pass" war funding = and=20 tsunami relief bill. The little debate in the House and total = absence of=20 debate in the Senate ensured that many Congressmen did not realize = the=20 full implications of REAL ID. Importantly, the desire by = government and=20 economic interests to implement a national tracking and ID system = did not=20 start with the REAL ID Act in 2005. Under the guise of security, = it has=20 been attempted numerous times in the past, even during Ronald = Reagan's=20 administration. When former Attorney General William French Smith = proposed=20 to implement what he called a "perfectly harmless" national ID = system as=20 well as when a second cabinet member proposed to "tattoo a number = on each=20 American's forearm," Ronald Reagan responded, "My God, that's the = mark of=20 the beast," signaling an abrupt end to the national ID debate = during the=20 Reagan years.

The=20 significant opposition to a national ID system in the past extends = to the=20 REAL ID issue today. This conviction has united both Democrats and = Republicans as well as such normally opposed groups as the ACLU = and the=20 ACLJ. Whether the concern is privacy, religious rights, states' = rights, or=20 cost of implementation, REAL ID has galvanized broad and deep = resistance,=20 currently including an estimated six hundred groups. Today, over = twenty=20 legislatures have passed resolutions or legislation variously = opposing=20 implementation of the REAL ID Act. Eleven of those legislatures = have gone=20 further by passing laws specifically prohibiting compliance with = REAL ID.=20

What=20 does REAL ID do? REAL ID attempts to mandate a standardized = process and=20 format for all state drivers' licenses to achieve increased = security. Most=20 importantly in this standardized process, REAL ID mandates a = certain=20 picture quality. A footnote issued by the Department of Homeland = Security=20 establishes this quality as compliant with the ICAO Document 9303=20 biometric format. The global body setting this format, the = International=20 Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is a specialized agency = created under=20 the United Nations. Biometric data can be produced from a simple = digital=20 photograph of this quality by running the picture of a person's = face=20 through a software program which measures and analyzes the unique, = personally identifiable characteristics of that face. The process = results=20 in a unique numeric code which identifies a person according to = facial=20 measurements. You read that correctly. A unique number or "code" = is=20 developed from an algorithmic formula which converts a digital = biometric=20 sample to biometric "face print" data. Under REAL ID biometric = facial=20 recognition technology, you become a number literally worn on your = face -=20 a number which is read by computer, tracked by surveillance = camera, and=20 distributed worldwide. Clearly, this international standard = provides=20 global compatibility of American citizens' biometric data = collected=20 through REAL ID.

Having=20 this background, we should observe that many Americans still do = not know=20 why the provisions of the REAL ID Act must be rejected and = aggressively=20 opposed because they do not understand the full implications of = REAL ID.=20 Many wrongly assume that the legitimate need for security trumps = all other=20 considerations. However, REAL ID is not primarily about a secure = driver's=20 license or terrorism prevention. The full and dangerous = implications of=20 REAL ID may be fleshed out through a discussion of why each = American must=20 vigorously oppose this Act's most basic tenets. It poses dangers = in the=20 following three areas:

1 = - REAL ID=20 violates Constitutional rights.
2 - REAL ID=20 compromises national and state sovereignty.
3 = - REAL=20 ID threatens the safety of all Americans.

I- First,=20 let us note that compliance with REAL ID would violate our=20 constitutionally protected freedoms.

Amendment = I -=20 Freedom of Religion

REAL ID=20 violates freedom of religion for some citizens by forcing = inclusion into a=20 system which requires a picture - and more - just to access public = services. The Amish and some Mennonites provide examples of = religious=20 groups who view the mere taking of photographs as idolatry. REAL = ID=20 conditions their freedoms, such as entering a federal building, = upon a=20 provision which violates their religious beliefs. Because this=20 "government" identification system limits travel and access to = certain=20 public places, and could even become a debit card, other more = mainline=20 religious groups view REAL ID as the advent of the "mark of the=20 beast."

Particularly = because this=20 technology assigns a unique number to represent each person's = biometric=20 face print, these concerns are hardly unfounded.

A=20 Powerpoint presentation from L-1 Identity Solutions, the major = biometrics=20 company in the U.S. today, bolsters this claim. A slide in that=20 presentation includes a graph which charts future likely = applications for=20 biometrics. Phase 1 of this "blueprint" for biometric = implementation=20 utilizes the authority of Federal agencies to impose such = requirements as=20 REAL ID. Phase 2 utilizes bureaucratic leveraging on regulated = industries=20 to implement biometrics. Phase 3 anticipates mass implementation = on the=20 citizens at large for such everyday activities as buying and = selling. As=20 an example, under Phase 2 DHS is attempting to force airlines to = pick up=20 the costs of collecting biometrics from foreigners at airports. In = Texas=20 under Phase 3, a company is experimenting with using the driver's = license=20 as a debit card. Whether one is personally alarmed at some or all = of these=20 concerns, REAL ID would prohibit the free exercise of religion for = many=20 people.

Amendment = IV =96=20 Freedom of Privacy

REAL ID=20 also violatess the Fourth Amendment's guarantee of freedom of = privacy.=20 First, by mandating the collection, storage, and dissemination of=20 personally identifiable data without any informed consent, REAL ID = tramples on this right. In reality, this practice constitutes=20 government-sanctioned identity theft and seriously breaches the = "security=20 of person" guaranteed to every U.S. citizen. No sufficiently = compelling=20 need exists to warrant government mass collection and storage of = such=20 sensitive information about its citizens. Concern heightens even = further=20 when private corporations control the databases being set up to = house this=20 information. As an example, L-1 Identity Solutions houses a = database of=20 U.S. driver's license information. This company, which has = consolidated a=20 virtual monopoly on the driver's license issuing market in the = U.S., will=20 handle all private information collected during the license = issuing=20 process.

Secondly, REAL ID = threatens=20 freedom of privacy because this warehoused data cannot be = confidently=20 secured. Even the Department of Homeland Security's own Privacy = Impact=20 Assessment fails to guarantee that the database linking and = networking=20 that will result from REAL ID will be secure. Many privacy experts = agree=20 that REAL ID will actually increase identity theft! In reality, = the=20 database and access to it will create an electronic superhighway = for=20 potential mass identity theft.

Thirdly,=20 REAL ID violates the Fourth Amendment in that the process of = collecting=20 personal biometric data without consent violates the very laws = that exist=20 to protect against such measures. This is probably one of the most = significant Constitutional issues. Current US law allows the = collection of=20 biometric information only in the case of criminal activity. = However, REAL=20 ID institutionalizes the capture of facial recognition biometrics = for=20 every driver, regardless of criminality.

Fourthly, REAL ID = ripens the=20 climate for aggressive efforts to control the masses via = information and=20 leading-edge technology, regardless of crucial privacy = considerations.=20 Data collection and surveillance is simultaneously occurring = across=20 several diverse fronts, each one a potential privacy danger = painting the=20 broader picture of where REAL ID will take us as a country. For = instance:=20

1- In Rhode=20 Island, a school district is allowing a company to place radio = frequency=20 tracking (RFID) chips in students' book bags.

2-=20 Nationwide, Great Britain has installed an estimated 4.2 million=20 surveillance cameras utilizing facial recognition technology to = keep tabs=20 on all citizens. These cameras, of which there is 1 for every 14 = citizens,=20 can observe a person up to 300 times in a normal day in the city = of=20 London.

3- China is=20 aggressively pursuing country-wide surveillance of its citizens = using=20 facial recognition technology purchased from a contractor supplied = by the=20 previously mentioned L-1 Identity Solutions.

4-=20 According to a June 28, 2008 New York Times article, US and = European=20 officials are nearly agreed upon a "binding international = agreement" which=20 would allow "European governments and companies to transfer = personal=20 information to the United States, and vice versa." Under the cloak = of=20 terrorism prevention, European governments could request "private=20 information - like credit card transactions, travel histories, and = Internet browsing habits" about American citizens.

5- Homeland=20 Security Presidential Directive 24 issued by the President on June = 5,=20 2008, "establishes a framework to ensure that Federal executive=20 departments and agencies use mutually compatible methods and = procedures in=20 the collection, storage, use, analysis, and sharing of biometric = and=20 associated biographic and contextual information of individuals." = This=20 step shows the President's extensive authority and disregard for = privacy=20 in streamlining the biometric sharing process.

6- The FBI=20 is currently building a billion-dollar database to house an = enormous=20 amount of biometric data. While officially aimed at housing = criminal and=20 terrorist data, this database already retains finger prints, iris = scans=20 and other individual biometrics that the government collects on = ordinary=20 citizens. Who knows the extent of the private information that = will be=20 stored in this massive database? REAL ID-collected "face prints" = are just=20 one more piece of the data collection and tracking = system.

These=20 examples only serve to underscore the aggressive global government = efforts=20 to track and control citizens. In every case, REAL ID violates the = freedoms guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment.

Amendment = X =96=20 States' Riights

REAL ID=20 violates the Tenth Amendment in that the federal government is = attempting=20 to force the states to collect private data on their citizens, = only to=20 allow that data to be shipped out-of-state and shared worldwide. = This=20 action forces the states to work against the very interests of the = citizens they are to protect. When states accede to this pressure = under=20 REAL ID, they allow the transfer of state authority to the federal = government. The separation of powers built into our Constitution = then=20 crumbles as the federal government makes the rules, interprets the = rules,=20 and enforces the rules regarding all state drivers' licenses. =

II- In=20 addition to the three ways REAL ID would violate the Constitution, = compliance with the REAL ID Act would undermine our national and = state=20 sovereignty. While REAL ID reads like a manual for a national ID = card, the=20 Department of Homeland Security's own rules for REAL ID reveal = that it=20 implements an international ID system based on biometric = identification.=20 Complying with the requirements under REAL ID would violate U.S. = national=20 and state sovereignty by forcing states to adopt international = biometric=20 facial image standards and to document standards set by = international=20 organizations.

As=20 mentioned previously, the ICAO, affiliated with the UN, sets the = standards=20 for facial image captures (photos). Besides tracking the movements = of=20 international travelers, the ICAO also has assumed the = responsibility of=20 creating a common international passport system that stores = individual=20 personal and biometric information on a RFID chip built into the = passport.=20 The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA), = which=20 recognizes ICAO standards, "enables" this scheme. This = international body=20 and private organization sets nearly all the standards for REAL ID = document scanning, storage, data encryption, barcode and layout = design to=20 comply with their 2005 international driver's license system. = Under REAL=20 ID, AAMVA is the hub and backbone of the database system being set = up to=20 share information between states. From a broad perspective, the = system=20 created by REAL ID destroys national sovereignty and = constitutional=20 authority by removing control of government from the people and=20 establishing government control over the people.

Furthering AAMVA's = control=20 strategy here in North America, implementation of REAL ID is "de = facto"=20 enrollment of each state into AAMVA's Driver's License Agreement = (DLA).=20 AAMVA has pushed the DLA, which meets REAL ID specifications, for = nearly=20 ten years. The implementation of this DLA is crucially important = to the=20 global effort because it mandates the sharing of all U.S. drivers' = license=20 information with Mexico and Canada. This egregious step places = U.S.=20 citizen's data at the mercy of Canadian and Mexican privacy = controls,=20 further exacerbating the identity theft problem, and violating=20 Constitutional law and national sovereignty by essentially having = states=20 form a treaty with a foreign nation.

REAL ID=20 also violates national sovereignty because any international = system=20 includes and requires agreements and obligations that would weaken = any=20 sovereign standing. In fact, a Government Computer News report = notes the=20 following from Robert Mocny, acting program manager for the U.S. = Visitor=20 and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program. His quote comes = from=20 comments about a federal plan to extend biometric data sharing to = Asian=20 and European governments and corporations, so as to create a = Global=20 Security Envelope of identity management.

"My=20 question is, how is it ethical not to share?" Mocny asked. "It = makes no=20 sense for us to develop separate systems . . . information sharing = is=20 appropriate around the world." Government Computer News further = notes that=20 he is sketching a plan for sharing biometric data that would = permanently=20 link an individual with data that governments and corporations = hold. Since=20 both governments and corporations have been infiltrated by = extremists and=20 terrorists and since certain governments of today may be our = enemies=20 tomorrow, I hardly think that worldwide sharing of our citizen's = data is a=20 good idea!

Enhanced=20 Driver's Licenses (or EDL's) provide a further example of the = undermining=20 of national and state sovereignty. Citizens that purchase these = nearly=20 REAL ID-compliant licenses, which contain biographic and biometric = information on an RFID chip, can use them as a passport to enter = either=20 Mexico or Canada. This advancement establishes the international = ID=20 designation of REAL ID. The Canadian province British Columbia has = also=20 issued a new EDL which, according to their website is also, "an = acceptable=20 document for entry from Canada into the United States by land and=20 water."

REAL ID=20 violates state sovereignty because the issue in contention is = "national=20 identity management", with the federal government manipulating the = tool of=20 state driver's licenses. Consider the following statements about = REAL ID=20 from Electronic Data Systems, the very company likely to maintain = AAMVA's=20 driver's license database: "The Real ID Act, then, is about more = than a=20 driver's license. It puts in place a set of standards for Identity = Management (IdM) that can be leveraged across an entire government = organization to create an integrated citizen identity security = program."=20 The international biometric standards mandated in DHS's final = rules, paint=20 the broader picture of an international ID card for government=20 surveillance and tracking.

III- REAL=20 ID would endanger Constitutional rights and both national and = state=20 sovereignty. Finally, let us consider that compliance with the = REAL ID Act=20 would compromise the safety of our people. Unlike what some = government=20 officials might say, 9/11 and the prevention of terrorism are not = the real=20 reasons for REAL ID. In fact, this technology was being pushed = well before=20 9/11. Although REAL ID and biometrics are promoted as the = "cure-all" to=20 terrorism and identity theft problems, many highly dispute this = claim. In=20 response to the post-9/11 claims of biometrics companies that = their=20 technology could have prevented 9/11, Jim Wayman, the former head = of the=20 US Biometrics Center countered, "No, the government didn't have = this stuff=20 in place, precisely because it had been working on it and knew its = limitations and didn't find any value for the costs involved." He = further=20 noted, "It's going to be hard to know how these technologies can = be=20 applied to increase national security. We're not just going to = turn these=20 machines on and start catching terrorists." REAL ID will not = assure=20 greater safety since terrorists will either avoid or duplicate a = REAL ID=20 compliant drivers' license, although a correctly operating = biometric=20 system would certainly increase the difficulty of faking or = forging a=20 license.

Despite=20 the government's assurances about the "certain" safety benefits of = REAL=20 ID, no government or company can create a foolproof, perfectly = secure=20 system. A person who breaks the law or who desires to wreak havoc = on=20 American soil will find a loophole with which to avoid the = requirements of=20 REAL ID. One needs only consider that driver's licenses on the = black=20 market will continue to be readily available.

Further,=20 the safety of law abiding citizens will be compromised as their = identities=20 are stolen, stored and made accessible to thieves around the = globe. Some=20 people reject this idea because they hope that the government will = be able=20 to protect their identity once it has all of a person's = information. The=20 simple faith implicit in this idea is widely misplaced, however. = As proof,=20 consider that in 2007, a Globe and Mail report noted, "A security = flaw in=20 Passport Canada's website has allowed easy access to the personal=20 information - including social insurance numbers, dates of birth = and=20 driver's licence numbers - of people applying for new passports." = A breach=20 of security in Great Britain last December resulted in the loss of = approximately 25 million individual records. In my state of = Pennsylvania,=20 a security breach which occurred two years ago at a Driver's = License=20 Center resulted in over 11,000 records being compromised. Such = security=20 breaches highlight significant personal dangers to law abiding = citizens=20 and prove that the only secure data is uncollected data. =

Finally,=20 REAL ID does not assure safety because biometric technology itself = does=20 not work predictably. At this point in time, the technology we are = discussing does not work well; hence REAL ID and facial = recognition=20 biometrics can not ensure safety. As a result, no one has yet been = successfully prosecuted via facial biometrics. The opportunity for = false=20 identification and therefore being, "guilty before proven = innocent" is=20 great. For example, the Tampa, Florida police force scrapped a = facial=20 recognition system in 2003 because, according to a spokesman, "We = never=20 identified, were alerted to, or caught any criminal. It didn't = work."=20 While on its face, the concept of REAL ID seems like it would = increase=20 security, it does not. A Privacy International Study conducted in = 2004=20 found "Of the 25 countries that have been most adversely affected = by=20 terrorism since 1986, eighty percent have national identity cards, = one=20 third of which incorporate biometrics. This research was unable to = uncover=20 any instance where the presence of an identity card system in = those=20 countries was seen as a significant deterrent to terrorist = activity." The=20 simple truth is that REAL ID cannot stop crime.

In=20 summary, we have seen that REAL ID threatens Constitutional = rights,=20 national and state sovereignty, and the safety of our people. The=20 enrollment of American citizens into an international biometric = system of=20 identification and tracking constitutes the heart of the REAL ID = issue. A=20 secure driver's license is not the ultimate goal or certainly the = ultimate=20 result of the REAL ID Act. And it is unfortunately clear that the = ultimate=20 purpose is government tracking and economic control through = enhanced=20 knowledge and surveillance through biometric identification and = tracking.=20

This=20 being established, it is clear that this aggressive effort of the = federal=20 government, working hand-in-hand with private commercial = interests, must=20 be opposed on every level. While Congress must move to quickly = repeal the=20 passage of the REAL ID Act, the states provide an ideal position = from=20 which to fight this encroachment by the federal government. The=20 responsibility for the security and privacy of our own generation = and the=20 generations to come, however, rests upon our shoulders. =

The next=20 action to be taken involves the following three steps.

First,=20 Congress must immediately repeal the REAL ID Act and resist any = effort to=20 pass anything remotely similar. Secondly, individual states which = have not=20 passed legislation preventing implementation of any provision of = REAL ID,=20 particularly the biometric portion, must do so without delay. As = has been=20 stressed throughout this article, biometrics is the core provision = of REAL=20 ID; consequently, the states must move to protect their citizens'=20 biometric data immediately. This step is critical because the vast = majority of statutory law did not envision the breadth of = individually=20 identifiable data that could be gleaned by rapidly advancing = technology.=20 Further, because L-1 Identity Solutions holds a virtual monopoly = as=20 contractor for state DMVs, they could use their position to coerce = the=20 states into implementing all of DHS's wishes. This scenario = further=20 endangers state's rights.

Therefore, it is = not enough=20 for states to simply stop collecting biometric data. They must = purge and=20 "dumb-down" databases to preclude any government knowledge or use = of=20 private citizen's biometrics. Additionally, private third-party=20 inspections should be ordered to ensure that all measures have = been fully=20 implemented. Fundamentally, the states must demand control =96 = they must=20 inform the contractor what to ddo, not vice versa. Thirdly, = citizens must=20 play a role in resisting illegitimate actions of the federal = government.=20 They must be encouraged in their capacity as law-abiding citizens = to whom=20 Constitutional guarantees were acknowledged, to resist = implementation of=20 any effort that would compromise their individual, God-given=20 rights.

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The=20 American people remain the strongest defenders of freedom in the = world.=20 Many in our past have died for the liberties we enjoy today. Most = of us=20 are still willing to fight and die today for our freedom and the = freedom=20 of our children tomorrow. May we each do our part to ensure the = greatest=20 nation on earth remains "the land of the free and the home of the=20 brave!"

"Liberty has = never come=20 from the government; it has always come from the subjects of it. = The=20 history of liberty is a history of limitation of governmental = power, not=20 the increase of it." -Woodrow Wilson

Sam=20 Rohrer is a Representative for the state of Pennsylvania and a = member of=20 the American Policy Center Advisory Board.

For more=20 information on the dangers of the Real ID Act, contact: =

Mark=20 Lerner
Co-Founder - Stop Real ID Coalition
Phone: (816)=20 401-7615
Email: stoprealid@aol.com

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Sam=20 Rohrer is a Representative for the state of Pennsylvania and a = member of=20 the American Policy Center Advisory Board.