US Senate reins in ID card project

The US Senate took a preliminary step on Wednesday toward reining in the controversial Real ID Act, which is scheduled to become the US' first federal identification card in a few years.

During Wednesday's floor debate over a massive immigration bill, Real ID foes managed to preserve an amendment to prohibit the forthcoming identification card from being used for mandatory employment verification, signalling that the political winds have shifted from when the law was overwhelmingly enacted two years ago.

The anti-Real ID amendment is backed by two Montana Democrats, Max Baucus and Jon Tester, who say the digital ID cards represent an unreasonable government intrusion into citizens' private lives. In April, Montana became one of the states that has voted to reject Real ID.

After the Senate vote to kill their amendment failed to muster a majority, Tester said: "This was a real victory for Montana and the American people." The unsuccessful vote to table the amendment was 45-52.

The Real ID Act says that, starting on 11 May, 2008, US citizens will need a federally approved ID card to travel on an airplane, open a bank account, collect Social Security payments or take advantage of nearly any government service.

States must conduct checks of their citizens' identification papers and driver's licences may have to be reissued to comply with Homeland Security requirements. (States that agree in advance to abide by the rules have until 2013 to comply.)

The immigration bill, which is backed by the Bush administration and has drawn the ire of many conservatives, requires employers to demand Real ID cards of new hires starting in 2013. It says that "no driver's licence or state identity card may be accepted if it does not comply with the Real ID Act".

Declan McCullagh writes for CNET News.com