Setting the Record Straight on REAL ID (Part III) – Too Much Spaghetti

Critics of REAL ID often misrepresent what it is and what it is not. Probably the most egregious myth is the claim that the law creates a national ID that Americans will be required to carry.

Wrong. REAL ID is simple. The regulation requires that states meet minimum security standards when they issue driver’s licenses and identification cards necessary for “official purposes,” like getting on a plane or entering federal buildings. That’s it. The federal government’s role is to make sure that states meet minimum standards of security, so that banks and airports in one state can count on the quality of licenses issued in another.

States will still control their licenses and the personal information they collect. And, they will have plenty of flexibility in setting the license’s design, physical security features, and issuance procedures. These minimum standards will make it harder for terrorists to take advantage of the weak security of a particular state, the way Timothy McVeigh did when he used a fake South Dakota license to rent a Ryder truck in Oklahoma to bomb the Murrah Federal Building.

Don’t want a REAL ID? Don’t get one. If you don’t need a driver’s license or similar ID today, nothing in the REAL ID Act requires you to get one. In fact, the federal government does not have the authority to regulate how or whether a bank, grocery store, retailer, or school requires REAL ID. States and private companies make those determinations. So, given that states will have control over the production and issuance processes, the design and features of the card, and the data stored, how can anyone argue that REAL ID is a national ID? In short, they can’t, but that does not stop them from trying.

REAL ID is one of the last 9/11 Commission recommendations that still remains to be implemented. All but one of the nineteen 9/11 hijackers carried some form of government-issued ID, mostly state driver’s licenses, many of which were obtained fraudulently. In the planning stages for the attacks, these documents were used to rent vehicles, evade law enforcement, enroll in flight school, and board airplanes on that fateful day.

The 9/11 Commission was dismayed, like the rest of us, by how easy it was for the hijackers to beat the system. That’s why the Commission recommended that “(s)ecure identification should begin in the Untied States. The Federal Government should set standards for the issuance of birth certifications and sources of identification, such as driver’s licenses.”

Critics of REAL ID have been busy throwing a lot of spaghetti on the walls. They’ll tell you it’s a national ID, it invades privacy, or that it’s too expensive. Spaghetti throwing is almost a pastime in the beltway. It is also an indication that one lacks valid arguments. So, absent that validity, they’ll throw out a bunch of poor arguments and see which ones stick.

But, REAL ID is too important for these sorts of myths or games. I have commented on some of them in earlier blogs, and I’m still waiting for a convincing argument in favor of insecure identification. If you have one, I’d sure like to see it.

For more information on REAL ID, visit: www.dhs.gov/realid.

Stewart A. Baker
Assistant Secretary for Policy

Setting the Record Straight on REAL ID -- Part II Privacy

Is REAL ID a threat to privacy? There are critics who will say so. But, these same critics can’t and won’t tell you precisely how REAL ID threatens privacy. There’s a reason for that. They have no evidence. The facts are that REAL ID will actually increase privacy protections for Americans, and in several concrete ways.

Under REAL ID, state Departments of Motor Vehicles (DMVs)--not the federal government--will continue to control driver’s license data. And, thanks to REAL ID, that data will get additional protection from disclosure. State DMVs will meet tough new security standards for that data.

State security plans must address, among other things:

• the physical security of the facilities and materials used to produce licenses,
• the design and security features on the cards, and
• the security of how the public’s personal information is managed.

In addition to the "Driver’s Privacy Protection Act," which will continue to bar states and their employees from selling or releasing personal information, the DHS Privacy Office has established a set of best practices for the protection of this information. These best practices provide guidance to the states and raise the bar for state DMVs beyond what was previously required by federal or state law.

Another myth we sometimes hear – "But, won’t REAL ID create new links between DMVs, who will now be checking to make sure that drivers don’t hold licenses from several states? Doesn’t that create a risk of hacking, and identity theft?" Here again, the argument does not hold any water. Law enforcement officials from every state can already log into DMV databases check the validity of a license when they perform a traffic stop. And, for the past 16 years DMV officials have run checks for commercial licenses to keep truck drivers from holding multiple licenses. To date, there’s not been a single reported privacy violation.

If you've ever been the victim of identity theft, there's a one-in-three chance that the thief used a fake driver's license to commit the crime. It’s very simple. Making licenses harder to forge will make this crime harder to perpetrate.

For example, REAL ID requires all states to verify birth certificates by going to the source – the states where the certificates were issued. It calls for electronic confirmation of the data on the certificates, making it much more difficult for an identity thief to create a fictitious identity using a forged birth certificate.

There will always be folks who yearn for a simpler day – before Google, before the Social Security Number, and before telephone books. No doubt all of these innovations have had an effect on privacy. But, they’ve also made modern life far more convenient.

There will also always be folks who yearn for a world where ID isn’t necessary. But, we don’t live in such a world. And, pretending we can live without ID will simply make the lives of the criminals, or even terrorists, easier.

A Public Opinion Strategies poll taken last year shows that 82 percent of the American public favors secure identification to prevent terrorism and identity theft. Most all Americans currently reside in states that are well on their way to secure licenses. There’s still time for the remaining three states to get on board, and provide their citizens with a powerful protection against identity theft.

Thanks for reading. I’ll check in with other thoughts on the topic soon.

Stewart A. Baker
Assistant Secretary for Policy

Fit to Print?

The Times got it wrong again. I feel compelled to set the record straight for 17,000 employees who work late nights and weekends to welcome lawful immigrants into our society. I will not stand idly by as the New York Times insults the dedicated and professional services they provide.

If the Times seeks to add legitimacy to its editorial, they should first get the facts straight. USCIS received more than 600,000 applications for citizenship in June and July of 2007 - a 350 percent increase from the same time the year before. While this surge was substantial, it isn’t close to the “perhaps a million empty promises” the Times suggests.

Further, all applications received during that time have been opened, issued receipts, and entered into our processing queue. The idea that there are “envelopes with large checks and money orders, delivered by truckloads, waiting in shrink-wrapped pallets, unopened” at any USCIS facility, is an outright fabrication, hastily conceived by an imaginative writer.

What the writer failed to mention, and what I personally conveyed to the Times, is that more than half of all the citizenship applications received in June and July will be completed by September 30. Further, many of the applicants who filed for citizenship after July 2007 have already been naturalized. The writer also omitted that not withstanding our challenges, in 2008 we will process some 20-25 percent more citizenship applications than in 2007, while maintaining the integrity of the immigration system and the security of the process.

The fact is, last year we anticipated an application surge, and dedicated USCIS employees at our Service Centers worked hard and long hours to process the increased number of applications received before fees were raised in July. As a result of their dedication, nearly 750,000 applications were processed in a record amount of time. Instead of commending this effort, the New York Times degraded it, suggesting “intentional disenfranchisement” of Latino voters. That is both absurd and an insult to our workforce.

This agency does not lose focus by such editorial bias. Our workforce will continue to do everything possible to assist immigrants on the path to legal residency or citizenship, facilitate the smooth transit of others who wish to work here temporarily, and safeguard the security of the United States through the integrity of our immigration system. Modernization efforts to build a fully-electronic immigration platform continue to move forward. More than 34 USCIS facilities will be renovated or replaced nationwide, and more than 3,000 new employees will join our ranks by the end of this year. Our professional training programs are varied and robust.

My posting today demonstrates to the more than 700,000 newly naturalized citizens that this country embraces free and open debate. It is a shame, however that a newspaper like the New York Times – which boasts with each paper that it contains all the news that’s fit to print – only values its version of a story and leaves no room for that debate or for the facts.

Emilio T. Gonzalez
Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

REAL ID – Plain and Simple

The driver’s license is the most commonly used identity document in the United States. Originally designed to verify that you’re allowed to drive, it is now the primary identification for almost everyone over the age of 16 in the United States. It’s used to enter federal buildings, board airplanes, prove your age, and it’s even used in some states as a debit card.

Like it or not, Americans rely on driver’s licenses for every day life. That’s why the security of state licensing systems is so important. And, licensing systems are only as secure as the weakest link.

Unfortunately, we learned this the hard way. Twice.

First, in 1995, when Timothy McVeigh was able to create a fake South Dakota license with ease; all it took was a manual typewriter and a kitchen iron. He used the license to rent a Ryder truck in Oklahoma and destroy the Murrah Federal Building. Then, on September 11, 2001, eighteen of the nineteen hijackers carried government-issued IDs – mostly state driver’s licenses, many obtained fraudulently.

The 9/11 Commission recognized that it’s too easy to get false identification in the U.S. That’s why the Commission determined that “(s)ecure identification should begin in the United States. The federal government should set standards for the issuance of birth certificates and sources of identification, such as driver’s licenses.” Congress responded with the REAL ID Act of 2005, which requires the federal government to set standards for the identifications it accepts.

At its core, the regulation requires that, in order for a state’s ID to be used to gain access to federal facilities, airplanes and the like, the state must implement strong security standards in three areas.

1. First, the state must apply better standards when verifying the identification of those applying for driver’s licenses.


2. Second, states must increase the physical security features on the driver’s license card by making it harder to alter or forge (e.g., optical variable devices, ultraviolet features, micro-printing, fine line duplex patterns, and other features that cannot be reproduced using commercially available products).


3. Finally, it calls for the security of the production facilities and materials used in the production of licenses, as well as the security of the DMV databases.

In recent weeks, we've heard myth upon myth and anecdote after anecdote to counter the mounting momentum in favor of REAL ID. Fifty-one jurisdictions, to include forty-six states accounting for 97 percent of the licenses issued in the United States, are already on the road to driver's license security. That’s because Americans want identity protection, and it’s because they recognize that knowing who a person is matters. We still live in a world where airplanes and passengers are a target of choice.

That’s where REAL ID comes in. Plain and simple.

As I write, four states have yet to commit to secure licenses for their citizens. The good news for these state leaders is that there’s still time to get on board. I’ll have more to say about this in the coming days. In the meantime, thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments.

Stewart A. Baker
Assistant Secretary for Policy

Lessons from Europe

I just returned from a trip to Europe to meet with several of my counterparts, and want to make an observation about what impressed me most about my visit.

In Berlin, Attorney General Mukasey and I signed an important agreement with Germany to improve information sharing, including information on known and suspected terrorists. While at the Reichstag building, which houses the German parliament, I came across an exhibit depicting the fall of the Berlin Wall. It’s easy to forget that just a short time ago Berlin was literally a divided city – totalitarianism on one side of the wall and democracy on the other. The photo brought to life a historical moment that a lot of people thought would never happen: students standing on top of the breached wall; East German guards looking unsure of themselves as freedom asserted itself before their eyes; and people separated for decades coming together in the streets to celebrate. Seeing the exhibit was an inspiring reminder of the power of freedom over tyranny and how the will of the people, even in the face of tremendous opposition, can lead to monumental change.

In Estonia, I signed an historic agreement with the Interior Minister to put his nation’s citizens on a path to join our Visa Waiver Program (VWP), which will allow them to travel to the United States without first having to get a visa. Several European countries have signed similar agreements with the United States, including the Czech Republic, Latvia, Slovakia, Hungary, and Lithuania. In his comments after the signing, the Interior Minister said something that really struck me. He praised the United States and the American people for standing by his country during its darkest days of Soviet occupation. As you may recall, America never recognized the Soviet occupation of the Baltic States. He told me that it was our stand against communism that gave his people hope and inspired him to hold fast to a dream that someday a fleet of white ships from the United States would sail into the Estonian port of Tallinn. Signing the VWP agreement signified to him that the symbolic white fleet had finally arrived, and the United States remains a symbol of hope and freedom for people all over the world.

Finally, I had a chance to visit the tomb of Pope John Paul II in Rome. Aside from being a man of tremendous faith and strength of character, Pope John Paul did as much as anyone to reverse the forces of tyranny. Pope John Paul assumed the papacy at a time when his native country of Poland and other states was still under communist rule. He refused to accept the conventional wisdom that said nothing could be done about it. Instead, he helped set in motion communism’s downfall.

These three things are vivid reminders that taking a so-called “realistic” view of the world does not mean abandoning our efforts to advance the cause of freedom around the world. Thirty years ago, few people would have thought it realistic to believe the Berlin Wall could fall, or that Estonia and other Eastern European nations would be liberated, or that Pope John Paul would help bring about the demise of communism. But these things did happen – and they happened not because people accepted the status quo, but because they held true to their ideals and vision of a better world and they acted upon their beliefs. That is a lesson Europe fought hard to achieve, and it is a lesson we should never forget in the United States

Michael Chertoff

Answers About the Fence

In recent months there has been much discussion and speculation about the fence we're building along our southwestern border. As part of this discourse, Americans have been asking a number of thoughtful questions on this Journal and in other venues. For the sake of accuracy and fairness, I would like to cite some of the more crucial ones and provide the kinds of straightforward answers they deserve.

Why does America need a fence? Our country has an illegal immigration problem that challenges its sovereignty and security. While fencing is not a panacea, in some areas it does make guarding our homeland easier. It slows down illegal border crossers, buying our Border Patrol agents time to apprehend them before they can reach our nation's interior.

What kind of fence are we building and how much fencing is being built? We are constructing a combination of pedestrian and vehicle fencing.

More than 300 miles of literal fencing, including more than 167 miles of pedestrian fence and 134 miles of vehicle fence, have been laid down. We are on track to building a total of 670 miles of fencing by the end of this year.

Are there places along the southwestern border where no physical fence will be constructed? In certain more remote areas, or areas with natural obstacles, we will install "virtual fencing" -- sensors, surveillance cameras and other kinds of technology -- in place of physical barriers.

What is P-28 and is it really being delayed for three years? P-28 stands for Project 28, a demonstration project involving one type of "virtual fencing" deployed along a 28-mile stretch in Arizona. It was designed to determine whether a certain kind of technology mix could be used to help secure the border.

Last summer, as part of the process, we discovered technical deficiencies. Those were corrected and last week, after successful field testing, our Department formally accepted P-28. Already, it has helped us identify and apprehend over 2,400 illegal aliens trying to cross the border since December.

Reports that we are delaying technology deployment across the border are overstated. We have been deploying and will continue to deploy solutions that will incorporate integrated radars and cameras, mobile surveillance systems, unattended ground sensors, unmanned and manned aviation assets, and an improved communications system.

We already have ground sensors in place and will acquire more of them in the coming year. We are also expanding our ground-based mobile surveillance systems.

Why does it appear that the literal fence is taking a while to construct? Appearances can be deceiving and building is not as simple as it sounds. In order to build a pedestrian fence, for instance, a long period of preparatory work is needed. Holes must be dug, concrete poured, and posts and bollards dropped into the holes. Only then can the wire sheeting be laid between the bollards and an actual fence created.

That's one reason visible signs of progress occur in spurts. But we have built more fence this past year than in the previous 20 years.
Another reason is this: Before any of this happens, the land must be possessed, surveyed, and graded. There are environmental laws to contend with, as well as an occasional landowner who refuses to grant the United States government access to any of his land.

Despite these challenges, we remain on course to achieving our construction goals by year's end.

Why didn't someone explain this to us the way you just did? That's a very good question indeed.

Michael Chertoff

An Untold Story

Sometimes the best stories at DHS are the ones that are seldom heard. For example, the incredible increase in persons with disabilities employed at DHS and their many contributions to safety and securing our homeland. We’ve known that to achieve our mission, we must tap into the knowledge, skills and abilities of all Americans. This includes one of the most under-utilized sectors of our country’s workforce – people with disabilities. Between February 2004 and October 2007, DHS headquarters witnessed a nearly 300 percent increase in employment of individuals with disabilities – from 50 to 191 employees. And, the department is stronger and more efficient thanks to their countless contributions day in and day out.

Both Secretary Chertoff and former Secretary Ridge have led a focused initiative to ensure that people with disabilities, including veterans who have been wounded serving our country overseas, are offered equal employment opportunities. The results have been remarkable. When this initiative began, individuals with disabilities comprised less than 2.5 percent of the headquarters workforce; now, they comprise over six percent. DHS headquarters further distinguished itself at the SES level, with a 7.4 percent participation rate for employees with disabilities (compared to the government-wide participation rate of less than four percent). We also exceeded the government-wide participation rate for the employment of people with disabilities at the GS 13, 14, and 15 grade levels.

The Secretary’s directive for DHS headquarters also served as a catalyst for the component agencies. FLETC and the Secret Service achieved impressive net increases in the employment of individuals with disabilities. FEMA, FLETC and the Coast Guard also exceeded the government-wide participation rate for the employment of people with disabilities at the GS 13, 14 and 15 grade levels. Most impressively, USCIS reports that approximately 10 percent of the new employees hired in 2007 were people with disabilities. This is a direct result of Director Emilio Gonzalez’s personal leadership on this issue.

DHS is among the first federal agencies to participate in the Department of Defense’s Operation Warfighter. The program provides wounded service members with meaningful opportunities, and provides DHS with an important new pipeline of veterans with skills, talents and abilities needed to support its mission. As a result, five DHS components (including the Coast Guard, USCIS and ICE) exceeded the government–wide participation rate for the employment of disabled veterans in FY 2007.

However, there is still much more ground to cover. While DHS headquarters and some components experienced positive results, the number of individuals with disabilities across our total workforce has essentially remained stagnant. Moreover, individuals with “targeted disabilities” continue to face very substantial obstacles as they seek equal employment opportunities.

To address these continuing obstacles, we are introducing two new projects that will be a great resource to our managers across the Department.

First, we have developed a new training program, “Employment of People with Disabilities: A Roadmap to Success.” This 45-minute training describes the department’s initiative, identifies the tools that make hiring people with disabilities a convenient option and contains personal testimonials from four DHS employees with disabilities. The statements from these employees are powerful.

The second new project is an “Accessibility Help Desk.” Like most large organizations, DHS currently operates many IT Help Desks. We now have a help desk staffed with specialists who understand unique disability-related information technology and assistive technologies. Employees with disabilities can be assured that a trained specialist will be there to help them with accessibility issues.

As we reflect on the department’s first five years, and on this initiative, we can point to many significant results. But, we are not complacent. It is our goal to continue to improve on these results if we want to truly open the doors of equal opportunity, and ensure our workforce meets the highest standards of excellence. DHS values diversity.

Daniel W. Sutherland
Officer for Civil Rights & Civil Liberties

Our Commitment to Iraqi Refugees

Today, both Senior Advisor for Iraqi Refugees Lori Scialabba and I testified before Congress on welcoming Iraqi refugees to the U.S. Bottom line -- since last spring, more than 3,559 Iraqi refugees have been admitted to our country and we expect many more in the coming months.

Make no mistake that the Iraqi refugee program is a top priority for this department. We are committed to working with the State Department and other program partners to welcome as many eligible Iraqi refugees as possible to the U.S. Every effort will continue to be made to provide protection to qualified refugees from Iraq as we work to ensure that the Iraqi refugee population is not infiltrated by individuals seeking to harm the United States. We have a moral and humanitarian obligation to help the people of Iraq equal to our obligation to also remain vigilant to preserve our national security.

Since the spring of 2007, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officers have interviewed Iraqis in Jordan, Syria, Egypt, Turkey and Lebanon. During FY2007, USCIS interviewed nearly 4,500 Iraqi refugee applicants; we anticipate that more than 8,400 interviews will have been completed by the end of the first half of FY2008, for a total of over 12,000 interviews to date. We expect both the number of interviews and the number of admitted applicants to rise in the coming months.

In just a few months time, Lori Scialabba, her counterpart at the Department of State – Ambassador James Foley – and all our partners have worked tirelessly to help guide and streamline our efforts to resettle Iraqi refugees in the U.S.

One recent change -- in-country refugee processing in Iraq to offer resettlement to embassy staff and their immediate family members in Baghdad who are at risk of persecution based on their association with the U.S. government. The first group of referrals from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad includes 31 staff and their immediate family members who, if approved, will receive expedited processing.

We currently have 20 USCIS employees in the region performing Iraqi processing and many other employees here in Washington devoting substantial time to this effort. We have also begun new hiring for our Refugee Corps, increasing the base level of 47 positions to 62 this year. Further, we are leveraging more of our Asylum Division employees to conduct interviews; we expect that asylum officers will assist in adjudicating half of the refugee cases we will process this year.

We’re the first to say that there is more work to be done, but important progress is being made. On average, the total processing time for Iraqi cases is significantly less than for any other refugee group worldwide. In fact, Iraqi refugees are able to enter the U.S. in four to six months – certainly much faster than refugees from anywhere else in the world.

We pledge -- along with our State Department colleagues and other partners -- to further the humanitarian mission of admitting Iraqi refugees while at the same time ensuring the highest standards of security for our homeland.

Emilio T. Gonzalez
Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Our Commitment to Military Naturalizations

On February 24, the New York Times published a factually inaccurate front-page article entitled “After the War, a New Battle to Become Citizens” about the commitment U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has made to processing military naturalizations in a timely manner. We intensely manage every aspect of the path to citizenship for our immigrant Armed Forces Service Members. As an American by choice and a veteran myself, this program has my close personal attention, and I can tell you that it is a real success story for our agency, the Department of Homeland Security, and our nation.

In 2007 alone, USCIS naturalized 4,735 military service members, with more than 1,300 taking the Oath of Allegiance at ceremonies overseas, in places like Iraq, Afghanistan and along the Demilitarized Zone in South Korea. Since 2001, USCIS has helped more than 36,900 immigrant soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines become United States citizens. These service members and their families have made extraordinary sacrifices for our nation, and USCIS does everything possible to ensure that qualified immigrants who serve in our military receive U.S. citizenship at the absolute earliest opportunity.

Despite exhaustive efforts to fulfill our obligation to our men and women in uniform, there are rare instances when we are unable to favorably approve their applications in an expedited time frame. Service members frequently move from post to post, sometimes internationally. Therefore, gathering the information necessary to process their applications requires additional time, notwithstanding the significant efforts employed by USCIS to ensure that applications are handled in a timely and expeditious manner. Let me say this, nothing stands in our way when it comes to supporting the military. We move mountains and travel to military installations worldwide to help members of the military in their quest to become citizens of the United States. This is the least we can do on behalf of a nation grateful for their service.

Working with the Department of Defense (DoD), we have, through these military naturalization efforts, cut in half the number of non-citizens serving on active duty. But numbers alone cannot tell the story of the USCIS commitment. USCIS has a specialized team at our Nebraska Service Center dedicated to processing military naturalization cases. Once the up-front processing is complete, dedicated specialists in our field offices complete the interview and testing for military naturalization -- a privilege our employees consider an honor. These immigration experts work tirelessly to ensure that applications are processed and completed before these brave men and women are deployed to combat zones overseas.

As of May 1, 2006, we began accepting fingerprints from service members submitted at the time of enlistment. This upfront intake of information has helped streamline the process for service members. In addition, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will expedite background security screening for any service member who notifies us of an impending deployment.

To improve communication and outreach with the armed forces community, USCIS recently established a dedicated toll-free hotline exclusively for military members and their families stationed in the United States and overseas. Through January 2008, we’ve responded to more than 7,200 calls requesting information about immigration and citizenship services. USCIS also accepts emails to ensure that the military, some of whom are stationed overseas, can find the most expeditious way to communicate with USCIS about their pending applications. Additional efforts include local initiatives in communities with large military populations, the development and dissemination of educational materials, a USCIS military brochure and targeted media efforts designed to reach our constituents both in the United States and overseas.

In all of our military naturalization efforts, we work in concert with our colleagues at DoD to ensure that the military community has accurate and up-to-date information about immigration services and benefits. We provide training to military lawyers, and USCIS community relations officers regularly conduct seminars and classes at military bases around the country, answering questions about naturalization and assisting with paperwork.

I am proud and extremely honored to serve this agency in support of our military men and women and their families. USCIS has always been, is now, and will remain steadfastly committed to exhausting every effort to ensure that the processing of military naturalization applications are a top priority and that qualified members of the military receive this honor on behalf of a grateful nation.

Emilio T. González

Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services