By Howard Fischer
Capitol Media Services
PHOENIX -- Real ID has been available in Arizona since 2015.
But it took until this past Thursday for Gov. Katie Hobbs to get her own travel document.
And none too soon: The Transportation Security Administration says that, beginning Wednesday, you travelers are going to need that or other documents if they want to get on a commercial flight.
"There's nothing like a deadline to spur people into action,'' the governor said.
There's also the fact that, from a practical standpoint, that Wednesday deadline really doesn't apply to her -- at least not yet.
One of the perks of the office is to be flown around the state and region in aircraft owned by the Department of Public Safety. And she also doesn't stand in the same line as pretty much everyone else for commercial flights, what with special treatment arranged by her security detail.
But Hobbs acknowledged there will come a time when she's no longer the state's chief executive and those perks disappear.
"Well, yes, that,'' she said.
So this past Thursday, she showed up at a Motor Vehicle Division office, passport, bank statement and a W-2 form in hand, to get her Real ID.
And that goes to the fact that, as of Wednesday, what kind of ID will be required will narrow.
"Most people who fly are used to being able to use their state-issued ID to be able to get through TSA,'' the governor said. And that has included a standard driver's license.
"Without a Real ID-compliant, that won't be the case any more,'' she said.
There will be other options.
A passport will suffice. So will a birth certificate along with two other documents with the person's current name and address.
But Hobbs said most people are likely to find it more convenient simply to show the enhanced driver's license.
Several things are needed to get one of these.
First is proof of identity, meaning an original or certified birth certificate, an unexpired U.S. passport or a passport card.
Applicants also need to provide a social security number, though no document is required.
Finally, there's the requirement for two documents from different sources with an name and current Arizona residential address. Options including a utility bill, insurance policies, government documents or credit card or bank statements.
MVD does take appointments online at "azmvdnow.gov'', which is a lot quicker than simply walking in and waiting.
And when everything is verified and a $25 fee is paid, there's a new picture taken and the license -- with the special notation of a star in the upper right corner -- is delivered in about a week.
The Wednesday deadline has been a long time in coming.
It started with the Real ID Act of 2005. Passed in the wake of attacks by terrorists who commandeered U.S. aircraft on Sept. 11, 2001, it requires state to have licenses that comply with certain security requirements.
But nothing in that law could force states to comply. And Arizona legislators, fearing it was tantamount to creating a national ID card, approved a measure in 2008 prohibiting the Motor Vehicle Division from producing a Real ID-compliance license.
Karen Johnson, then a state senator from Mesa, called the licenses an unwanted intrusion into privacy, rejecting arguments the new licenses are necessary for security.
"If you want to give up your liberty for security, you're going to end up with neither one,'' she said.
And then-Rep. Judy Burgess of Skull Valley said she feared that the new licenses would have a radio-frequency-identification chip that could be read by nearby scanners.
"They could embed RFID readers in federal buildings and anywhere,'' she said. "And they can, in essence, track you as a citizen everywhere you go.''
By 2015, however, some legislators became concerned when the Department of Homeland Security threatened to start enforcing the law banning people from boarding aircraft without a "secure'' license. So they agreed to make it an option for Arizonans -- albeit with a specific provision barring the use of RFID technology.
Hobbs, who was in the state Senate at that point, said she's not afraid of having one of the new licenses.
"I think there's been a lot of conspiracy theories, not just recently, around elections, around vaccines,'' she said, just like there were about Real ID. "People don't have a reason to be skeptical of it.''
So what happens to would-be travelers without either the Real ID or the other acceptable documents?
TSA says that it still may be possible to board an aircraft, at least for a domestic flight. But the agency warns that there will be additional scrutiny, with officers asking questions to verify identity.
And they say that could take hours -- even if someone eventually is cleared -- possibly meaning a missed flight.
All that possible hassle is apparently making Arizonans take notice. The MVD reports that about 85% of those coming into its offices are selecting to get a Real ID versus a standard license.
There is one other benefit of getting a Real ID.
It means a new photo on a license, something that might be welcome by those who never were happy with the one they have now.
Hobbs, for her part, said she thinks she's going to like her new one.
"It looked OK on the temporary one they gave me,'' she said.
—--
On X, Bluesky and Threads: @azcapmedia