In a little more than nine months, your passport to getting on a flight in the United States might indeed be a passport, because your Pennsylvania driver’s license may no longer be your ticket to clearing security and boarding an airliner. Pennsylvania has been granted an extension by the Department of Homeland Security until Oct. 10 to be in compliance with the controversial REAL ID program enacted by Congress in 2005.

Even so, Pennsylvania’s new compliant driver’s licenses won’t be available to the public until at least March 2019, meaning that unless the state is granted an additional extension, local airline passengers and those who enter federal buildings will be compelled to show alternative forms of identification.

The national program begins in less than two weeks, on Jan. 22, and there are a number of compliant states whose residents will begin using the REAL ID driver’s licenses. Several states in addition to Pennsylvania have been granted extensions, too, and requests from some others are under review.

On Oct. 1, 2020, every air traveler will need to show a REAL ID-compliant license or other allowable forms of ID for domestic flights. Such a license is one that meets the REAL ID Act’s security standards and is issued by a compliant state.

Pennsylvania, which is really late getting on board, is expected to have these licenses ready by March 2019. To get one will require some work and time, so it is a good idea to start thinking about how you will get what you need.

This all came about after the 9/11 attacks as a way to bolster security. The hijackers got valid ID cards issued by several states, according to the FBI, and the committee that was formed to make recommendations in the aftermath of 9/11 encouraged the federal government to come up with national ID standards to help eliminate fraud and terrorism. The regulation requires states to develop licenses with anti-counterfeiting measures and to file photographs and other essential information into a federal database.

All of this hassle could have been avoided if an ill-advised 2011 law had not been passed in Harrisburg essentially telling the federal government what it could do with its 2005 law. The Republican-controlled General Assembly and then-Gov. Tom Corbett wanted to send a message to the feds, saying, essentially, that we’re not going to follow this unfunded mandate, because it is going to cost the state millions of dollars, and besides, they said, this should be a states right issue.

In addition, opponents of the federal act, including the American Civil Liberties Union, said it is an unwarranted assault on privacy. Pennsylvania officials estimated that it is going to cost upward of $300 million to replace the existing licensing system, which includes more than 9 million driver’s licenses and nearly 1.7 million photo ID cards.

In the end, Pennsylvania residents are the ones who are suffering because of this misguided chutzpah. It came down to this: Either get on board with this program, or our driver’s licenses will no longer get us on airliners or into federally secure facilities.

In 2017, Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill partially nullifying the 2011 action. The General Assembly bill allows residents to decide whether they want one of the new types of license. If, for example, a person never flies nor anticipates entering a secure federal facility, he or she may decide not to get one of the new licenses.

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, you do not need a REAL ID driver’s license or identification card to drive, vote, apply for or receive federal benefits, enter an unsecured federal facility such as a post office, access a hospital or receive lifesaving services or participate in law-enforcement proceedings such as serving on a federal jury or testifying in federal court.

By the time Wolf signed the enabling legislation, there was not nearly enough time to meet the federal deadline. Homeland Security has been granting the state extensions to comply with the regulations, but there is no guarantee that the feds will extend the grace period beyond Oct. 10.

To get a compliant REAL-ID driver’s license, applicants will need an original or certified copy of their birth certificate with a raised seal or a valid U.S. passport. They will also need a copy of their Social Security card that is not laminated or sealed in plastic. They also will need proof of all legal name changes, such as marriage licenses or court orders. Last, but not least, they will need two forms of proof of their current Pennsylvania address.

Applicants can start contacting the State Department of Transportation in March to see whether PennDOT has copies of these documents on file. You can check the PennDOT website or call the agency at 717-412-5300.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com