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H.R. 2

             1     

RESOLUTION OPPOSING REAL ID ACT

             2     
2007 GENERAL SESSION

             3     
STATE OF UTAH

             4     
Chief Sponsor: Glenn A. Donnelson

             5     
             6      LONG TITLE
             7      General Description:
             8          This resolution of the Utah House of Representatives urges Congress and the United
             9      States Department of Homeland Security to suspend implementation of the REAL ID
             10      Act or repeal the REAL ID Act.
             11      Highlighted Provisions:
             12          This resolution:
             13          .    urges Congress and the United States Department of Homeland Security to suspend
             14      implementation of the REAL ID Act or repeal the REAL ID Act; and
             15          .    provides for distribution of the resolution.
             16      Special Clauses:
             17          None
             18     
             19      Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the state of Utah:
             20          WHEREAS, the implementation of the REAL ID Act intrudes upon the states'
             21      sovereign power to determine their own policies for identification, licensure, and credentialing
             22      of individuals residing therein;
             23          WHEREAS, one page of the 428 page 9/11 Commission report that did not give
             24      consideration to identification issues, prompted Congress to pass the legislation which created
             25      the REAL ID Act, ignoring states' sovereignty and their right to self-governance;
             26          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act converts the state driver licensing function into federal
             27      law enforcement and national security functions that are outside the purpose and core



             28      competency of driver licensing bureaus;
             29          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act constitutes an unfunded mandate by the federal
             30      government to the states;
             31          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act requires states to conform their processes of issuing
             32      driver licenses and identification cards to federal standards by May 2008;
             33          WHEREAS, the National Governor's Association, National Conference of State
             34      Legislatures, and American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators predict state
             35      compliance with the REAL ID Act provisions will require all of the estimated 245 million
             36      current driver license and identification card holders in the United States to renew their current
             37      identity documents in person by producing three or four identity documents, thereby increasing
             38      processing time and doubling wait time at licensing centers;
             39          WHEREAS, identification-based security provides only limited security benefits
             40      because it can be avoided by defrauding or corrupting card issuers and because it gives no
             41      protection against people not already known to be planning or committing wrongful acts;
             42          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act will cost the states over $11 billion to implement
             43      according to a recent survey of 47 state licensing authorities conducted by the National
             44      Governor's Association, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the American
             45      Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators;
             46          WHEREAS, the use of identification-based security cannot be justified as part of a
             47      "layered" security system if the costs of the identification "layer"--in dollars, lost privacy, and
             48      lost liberty--are greater than the security identification provides;
             49          WHEREAS, the "common machine-readable technology" required by the REAL ID Act
             50      would convert state-issued driver licenses and identification cards into tracking devices,
             51      allowing computers to note and record people's whereabouts each time they are identified;
             52          WHEREAS, a more secure and flexible system of verifying identity may be achieved
             53      by less intrusive means to the individual and to states by employing the free market and private
             54      sector ingenuity;
             55          WHEREAS, the requirement that states maintain databases of information about their
             56      citizens and residents and then share this personal information with all other states will expose
             57      every state to the information security weaknesses of every other state and threaten the privacy
             58      of every American;


             59          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act wrongly coerces states into doing the federal
             60      government's bidding by threatening to refuse noncomplying states' citizens the privileges and
             61      immunities enjoyed by other states' citizens;
             62          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act threatens the privacy and liberty of those individuals
             63      belonging to unpopular or minority groups, including racial and cultural organizations, firearm
             64      owners and collectors, faith-based and religious affiliates, political parties, and social
             65      movements;
             66          WHEREAS, Congress passed the REAL ID Act without a single hearing in either
             67      house and without an up-or-down vote in either house;
             68          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act thus imposes a national identification system through
             69      the states, premised upon the threat to national security, but without the benefit of public
             70      debate and discourse; and
             71          WHEREAS, the REAL ID Act is determined by the Utah State House of
             72      Representatives to be in opposition to the Jeffersonian principles of individual liberty, free
             73      markets, and limited government:
             74          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Utah House of Representatives
             75      urges the United States Congress and the United States Department of Homeland Security to
             76      suspend implementation of the REAL ID Act.
             77          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the REAL ID Act should be repealed outright by
             78      the United States Congress to avoid the significant problems it currently poses to state
             79      sovereignty, individual liberty, and limited government.
             80          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Majority
             81      Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives,
             82      and the members of Utah's congressional delegation.





Legislative Review Note
    as of 1-26-07 11:43 AM


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