Implementing REAL ID could cost Pa. $30 million
(Harrisburg) — Pennsylvania is finally taking steps to implement REAL ID in the commonwealth, 12 years after the federal law governing secure identification cards was passed.
PennDOT recently sent a report to the state legislature estimating the intitial cost to start issuing REAL ID cards to be between $24-30 million. That includes IT systems, equipment, and new facilities.
PennDOT plans to establish eight new driver’s license centers and renovate five existing ones to handle the influx of people resubmitting identifying documents for verification.
Community Relations Coordinator Alexis Campbell says they expect 25 percent of customers, or 2.5 million Pennsylvanians, to opt in to REAL ID.
“Which is going to be a huge surge of people into our 71 existing dirver’s license centers, which are already pretty much maxed out,” Campbell said.
PennDOT plans to have Real ID cards available to customers by spring 2019.
The cards will be required to board commercial flights and access federal buildings after October 1st, 2020.
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