Maine gets reprieve on Real ID

When Monday's deadline arrived for states to ask for extensions, the federal agency reported several shortcomings in Maine's effort and ordered the state to make corrections.

Tops on its list: Homeland Security wants the state to stop issuing licenses to illegal immigrants, a matter that has been particularly contentious in Maine. Unlike most states, Maine requires neither proof of citizenship nor proof of residency from license applicants.

Governor John Baldacci called the government's demands "reasonable" and said he planned to submit legislation to address all of those concerns.

"I have an obligation to make sure that state government acts in the best interest of all the people of Maine," the Democratic governor said in a statement. He added that he would "use the resources at my disposal to make sure they are implemented."

Baldacci said he wants the state to ensure that Maine residents are not penalized because of the state's identification standards, saying, "That's unacceptable to me."

Baldacci said it is time for Maine to enhance the security of its driver's licenses. At least three cases have been prosecuted in Maine since 2006 involving illegal immigrants procuring state driver's licenses.

The governor submitted a bill yesterday that seeks to limit state credentials to US citizens or to others who can establish their legal status in the country.

It also seeks to enroll the state in a system to verify Homeland Security documents presented by noncitizens and to create a policy to have a noncitizen's license expire at the same time as the immigrant's legal status ends.

The governor wants to make sure no one gets more than one driver's license or state ID.

In addition, Maine would change its driver's license procedure so photographs are taken at the beginning of the process. That way, images are captured even if applications are not completed.

Civil libertarians, who see Real ID as a national identification card as opposed to an antiterrorism effort, said Baldacci blinked first in the state's stare down with the federal government.

"The governor is trading constitutional rights for convenience," said Shenna Bellows, executive director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union.

Bellows took the governor to task for seeking "radical changes without due deliberation and serious concern for the full range of consequences for Mainers' privacy and security." She said the federal government's threat to keep Mainers off planes if the state had not secured a waiver was "arbitrary and probably unconstitutional."

The American Civil Liberties Union saw the Homeland Security action in Maine as a victory, said its senior legal council, Tim Sparapani. Homeland Security "has accepted essentially a mere promise of legislation to grant a waiver."