Connecticut's REAL ID Deadline Looms: Have You Been Verified?

CONNECTICUT — The countdown clock continues to tick, and if you're waiting for the process to get a REAL ID in Connecticut to get any easier, it won't.

Is it important? Only if you like to move around. Your REAL ID card (or REAL ID verified driver's license) will be required to fly domestically beginning May 3, 2023. Residents will no longer be allowed to board flights or visit federal facilities and military bases with ordinary driver's licenses or ID cards on that date. Those who do not have a REAL ID will need a valid U.S. passport to fly within the country.

On the upside, you won't need a REAL ID-compliant license if you already have a state-issued ID card, a valid US passport, or a permanent resident card.

A REAL ID verified license looks like a regular driver's license, but airline security and the guard at the front desk will be looking for a gold star in the upper right of the document (see sample above). A driver's license or ID card renewal is the same cost if your identity is verified or not. If you don’t need to renew a license and want to obtain a new verified license or REAL ID card, you’ll be charged a one-time $30 fee.

You will need to present two proofs of identity, and two different pieces of mail from two different sources to prove your home is located in Connecticut. Following the REAL ID Modernization Act and DMV policy, residents are no longer required to provide documentation of their Social Security Number when applying for a REAL ID. However, a Social Security card can still be used as part of identity verification.

Once you have all your docs in a row, you'll need to find the right DMV office nearest to you and set up an appointment with the DMV. If you have an online account with the state government, you can track the delivery of your new card like an Amazon package.

Why the sudden mobility crackdown? It's actually not new — President George W. Bush signed the REAL ID Act legislation in 2005. The law set forth federal requirements for standardizing state driver's licenses and ID cards. The REAL ID Act also tightens laws for immigrants to apply for asylum and waives regulations that interfere with constructing physical barriers at borders.

But you'll be hard-pressed to find legislation anywhere that raises more hackles across the entire political spectrum. Much of the criticism stems from the

Strange ideological bedfellows from the libertarian Cato Institute, immigrant- and civil-rights defender the American Civil Liberties Union, Christian-advocacy watchdog the American Center for Law & Justice, and Second Amendment protector Gun Owners of America have all come down against the REAL ID Act. Much of their criticism stems from the REAL ID Act's necessary creation of a national personal data storage system which would make government surveillance —not to mention grand scale identity theft — easier.

Supporters of the REAL ID Act, such as conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, dismiss the criticism and say that states will only be allowed to share data when validating someone's identity.

You can find more FAQs on the Connecticut State online portal.