07 LC 34
0876
Senate
Bill 5
By:
Senators Seabaugh of the 28th, Rogers of the 21st, Whitehead, Sr. of the 24th
and Shafer of the 48th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
state findings of the General Assembly regarding the Real ID Act; to amend
Article 1 of Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to general provisions regarding drivers´ licenses, so as to permit
the Governor of Georgia to delay implementing the requirements of the Real ID
Act until the Department of Homeland Security has issued regulations that the
Governor finds will adequately protect the interests of the citizens of Georgia;
to amend Article 2 of Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to issuance, expiration, and renewal of drivers´
licenses, so as to require the presentation of secure and verifiable documents
for purposes of obtaining a driver´s license; to provide for related
matters; to provide for an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for
other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
The General Assembly of Georgia finds that the Real ID Act, H.R. 1268, P.L.
109-13, enacted by Congress in 2005, established standards that state-issued
drivers´ licenses and identification cards must meet by May 11, 2008, if
the licenses or identification cards are to be accepted as valid identification
by the federal government. After May 11, 2008, federal agencies are scheduled
to accept only drivers´ licenses or identification cards that meet Real ID
standards. Noncompliant cards will not be accepted for federal purposes such as
boarding a domestic flight, opening a bank account, or any other service or
activity over which the federal government claims jurisdiction. Each state
will also be required to share data from their drivers´ licenses or
identification cards data base with other states. The exact requirements of the
Real ID Act have yet to be defined. The Department of Homeland Security was
originally going to promulgate regulations by November, 2005. That date was
changed to November, 2006. Currently, regulations are scheduled for January,
2007, but many parties feel this deadline may also pass without the regulations
being issued.
Because the Real ID Act was attached to a vital supplemental spending bill for
defense and tsunami relief, there was no opportunity for a full examination of
the consequences of the proposal. While everyone recognizes the need to make
identifying documents as secure as is humanly possible, the one-size-fits-all
approach required by the Real ID Act may actually increase the documents´
vulnerability to counterfeiting. If criminals are able to invade one
state´s system, they may have access to all states´ systems. On
another front, a report from the National Conference of State Legislatures, the
National Governors Association, and the American Association of Motor Vehicle
Administrators suggests that the new requirements of the Real ID Act will cost
states at least $11 billion over the first five years of the program. Despite
this massive price tag, there has been no money appropriated to help states meet
the law´s demands.
The Real ID Act gives the Department of Homeland Security the power to set
federal standards and determine whether state drivers´ licenses and other
identification cards meet these standards. There is no provision in the Real ID
Act that requires or even mentions information privacy or data security. The
federal and state governments must ensure that the data needed to verify the
identity of driver´s license applicants is maintained securely and not
used for other unrelated purposes. The Department of Homeland Security must
include privacy protections for personal driver data as they promulgate
regulations spelling out what states need to do to implement the federal law.
Success of the Real ID Act depends on the Department of Homeland Security and
the states collaborating to find a way of implementing its requirements in a
fiscally responsible and risk adjusted manner. Therefore, the Georgia
Department of Driver Services is directed to withhold any legislation designed
to implement the Real ID Act in Georgia until such time as the Department of
Homeland Security has enacted regulations that define the exact type of
information that is to be required on a state driver´s license.
Furthermore, before the Real ID Act is implemented in Georgia, the Governor of
Georgia is entitled to review the regulations promulgated by the Department of
Homeland Security and determine if they adequately safeguard and restrict use
of the information in order to protect the privacy rights of the citizens of
Georgia.
The citizens of Georgia also recognize the importance of ensuring that
drivers´ licenses are issued only to persons legally present in this state.
Therefore, the use of secure and verifiable identification will be required in
this state in order to obtain a driver´s license. This requirement is in
harmony with the intent of the Real ID Act to secure identification processes in
this country.
SECTION
2.
Article
1 of Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to general provisions regarding drivers´ licenses, is amended by adding a
new Code section to read as follows:
"40-5-4.1.
The
Governor of the State of Georgia, or his or her designee, is authorized to delay
compliance with certain provisions of the federal Real ID Act, H.R. 1268, P.L.
109-13, enacted by Congress in 2005, until it is expressly guaranteed by the
Department of Homeland Security, through adequately defined safeguards, that
implementation of the Real ID Act will not compromise the economic privacy or
biological sanctity of any citizen or resident of the State of
Georgia."
SECTION
3.
Article
2 of Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to issuance, expiration, and renewal of drivers´ licenses, is amended by
adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"40-5-21.2.
(a)
This Code section shall be known and may be cited as the 'Secure and Verifiable
Identity Document Act.'
(b)
As used in this Code section, the term:
(1)
'Department' means the Georgia Department of Driver Services.
(2)
'Secure and verifiable document' means a document issued by the federal
government of the United States, issued by the government of any one of the
several United States, or recognized by the government of the United States and
that is verifiable by federal or state law enforcement, intelligence, or
homeland security agencies.
(c)
The department shall not accept, rely upon, or utilize an identification
document for purposes of providing any service unless it is a secure and
verifiable document.
(d)
The department shall not issue an identification card, license, permit, or other
official document for which an identification document is required and shall not
authorize acceptance of an identification document unless such identification
document is a secure and verifiable document.
(e)
Actions taken in knowing violation of this Code section shall not be within the
scope of a public official´s official duties or employment for purposes of
any immunity from suit, including without limitation immunity under subsection
(a) of Code Section 50-21-25.
(f)
This Code section shall not apply to:
(1)
Any department official or employee:
(A)
Accepting a crime report or reporting a crime;
(B)
Conducting a criminal investigation; or
(C)
Providing emergency medical service; or
(2)
Instances when a federal law mandates acceptance of a
document."
SECTION
4.
This
Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its
becoming law without such approval.
SECTION
5.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.