Real I.D. is without doubt one of the most unpopular federal mandates of my generation. In the weeks to come, there will surely be wrangling in the nation's capital by select members of Congress and special-interest groups who wish to see Real I.D. come to fruition.

In an effort to allay worries of an unfunded mandate, money will be proposed, but it won't be anywhere near enough. In the end, Real I.D. will still be a massive threat to privacy, national security, and the financial solvency of state governments. We, as West Virginians, must tell our federal legislators why, liberal, conservative, and everyone in between, we do not support the funding of this irresponsible federal mess.

Privacy. Liberals and conservatives are not comfortable with the federal government setting up databases with their private information. This is what Real I.D. aims to do. Additionally, under the proposed mandate, all 56 licensing jurisdictions in the United States will have to run on one congruent information technology system. The end goal is to have all DMVs across the country able to share information with one another. The opportunities for having your personal information stolen are endless. One weak link in one DMV in any one of the 56 licensing jurisdictions in this country, and you could have a security breach of every American's personal information. Real I.D. is the best thing ever to happen to professional identity thieves.

Threat to Security. The fact remains that nothing about the Real I.D. program will make Americans any safer. It will, however, bleed money and resources from necessary security initiatives and put them in the pockets of private contractors who stand to gain immensely from the implementation of this federal mandate.

Cost. It seems the only thing that the federal government feels the states should have control over when it comes to Real I.D. is picking up the check. In 2005, the National Governors Association and Conference of State Legislators estimated the cost of implementing Real I.D. to the states at $23 billion. West Virginia's share was estimated at $40 to $60 million. Now, after Homeland Security has re-released the regulations, the number has dropped to a nationwide estimate of $10 billion dollars. How did they manage to cut the cost so much? One way was to stop counting a full quarter of Americans.

Under the original guidelines for the Real I.D. program, the federal government assumed that 100 percent of Americans with state issued identification would obtain a Real I.D., but when states balked at the tremendous cost, the Department of Homeland Security revisited that position. Realistically, I can see the logic in thinking that 2, 3 maybe even 5 percent of Americans with state issued identification would not get a Real I.D. However, in a blatant effort to drive down the massive cost to the states, the Department of Homeland Security concluded in their new regulations released in January of 2008, that 25 percent of Americans would never bother to get a Real I.D. and therefore should not be figured into the cost.

I want to point out how this logic will get states into trouble if they begin to comply with Real I.D. If states are preparing for only 75 percent of the task of implementing Real I.D., and it turns out that 98 percent of the job needs to be done, how will that impact the functioning of government? The end result could be crippling to the state DMV and any responsibilities in their charge. Additionally, the cost passed on to the individual citizens of West Virginia will be excessive. There is no way that states will be able to cover the massive costs of this ill-defined federal mandate. The money to be proposed in the weeks ahead will not be nearly enough. So, you and I will be picking up what is left in the form of higher drivers license fees. How much higher, no one can say for sure (some say $60, some as high as $100), but when you figure in how much longer it will take to get identification because of all the extra bureaucracy involved, West Virginians will conceivably be looking at missing a whole day of work to get a license that they will have to pay more for.

Any way you look at it, Real I.D. is a bad idea, and for a variety of reasons, it is offensive to West Virginians. Whether your reason is privacy, threat to security, burden to state government, or just plain common sense, we must let our federal representatives know that we, as West Virginians, expect them to kill this federal boondoggle during the next supplemental appropriations session. The amount to be proposed will not be close to the realistic cost states will have to bear for this ill-thought detriment to privacy. The ACLU of West Virginia encourages you to avail yourself of your First Amendment rights. Contact your senator and representative. Tell them not to throw good money after bad. Tell them not to commit West Virginia to a plan that is intentionally incomplete and bad for national security. Tell them "no new funding of Real I.D."

DiStefano is a community organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia.

Real I.D. is without doubt one of the most unpopular federal mandates of my generation. In the weeks to come, there will surely be wrangling in the nation's capital by select members of Congress and special-interest groups who wish to see Real I.D. come to fruition.

In an effort to allay worries of an unfunded mandate, money will be proposed, but it won't be anywhere near enough. In the end, Real I.D. will still be a massive threat to privacy, national security, and the financial solvency of state governments. We, as West Virginians, must tell our federal legislators why, liberal, conservative, and everyone in between, we do not support the funding of this irresponsible federal mess.

Privacy. Liberals and conservatives are not comfortable with the federal government setting up databases with their private information. This is what Real I.D. aims to do. Additionally, under the proposed mandate, all 56 licensing jurisdictions in the United States will have to run on one congruent information technology system. The end goal is to have all DMVs across the country able to share information with one another. The opportunities for having your personal information stolen are endless. One weak link in one DMV in any one of the 56 licensing jurisdictions in this country, and you could have a security breach of every American's personal information. Real I.D. is the best thing ever to happen to professional identity thieves.

Threat to Security. The fact remains that nothing about the Real I.D. program will make Americans any safer. It will, however, bleed money and resources from necessary security initiatives and put them in the pockets of private contractors who stand to gain immensely from the implementation of this federal mandate.

Cost. It seems the only thing that the federal government feels the states should have control over when it comes to Real I.D. is picking up the check. In 2005, the National Governors Association and Conference of State Legislators estimated the cost of implementing Real I.D. to the states at $23 billion. West Virginia's share was estimated at $40 to $60 million. Now, after Homeland Security has re-released the regulations, the number has dropped to a nationwide estimate of $10 billion dollars. How did they manage to cut the cost so much? One way was to stop counting a full quarter of Americans.

Under the original guidelines for the Real I.D. program, the federal government assumed that 100 percent of Americans with state issued identification would obtain a Real I.D., but when states balked at the tremendous cost, the Department of Homeland Security revisited that position. Realistically, I can see the logic in thinking that 2, 3 maybe even 5 percent of Americans with state issued identification would not get a Real I.D. However, in a blatant effort to drive down the massive cost to the states, the Department of Homeland Security concluded in their new regulations released in January of 2008, that 25 percent of Americans would never bother to get a Real I.D. and therefore should not be figured into the cost.

I want to point out how this logic will get states into trouble if they begin to comply with Real I.D. If states are preparing for only 75 percent of the task of implementing Real I.D., and it turns out that 98 percent of the job needs to be done, how will that impact the functioning of government? The end result could be crippling to the state DMV and any responsibilities in their charge. Additionally, the cost passed on to the individual citizens of West Virginia will be excessive. There is no way that states will be able to cover the massive costs of this ill-defined federal mandate. The money to be proposed in the weeks ahead will not be nearly enough. So, you and I will be picking up what is left in the form of higher drivers license fees. How much higher, no one can say for sure (some say $60, some as high as $100), but when you figure in how much longer it will take to get identification because of all the extra bureaucracy involved, West Virginians will conceivably be looking at missing a whole day of work to get a license that they will have to pay more for.

Any way you look at it, Real I.D. is a bad idea, and for a variety of reasons, it is offensive to West Virginians. Whether your reason is privacy, threat to security, burden to state government, or just plain common sense, we must let our federal representatives know that we, as West Virginians, expect them to kill this federal boondoggle during the next supplemental appropriations session. The amount to be proposed will not be close to the realistic cost states will have to bear for this ill-thought detriment to privacy. The ACLU of West Virginia encourages you to avail yourself of your First Amendment rights. Contact your senator and representative. Tell them not to throw good money after bad. Tell them not to commit West Virginia to a plan that is intentionally incomplete and bad for national security. Tell them "no new funding of Real I.D."

DiStefano is a community organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia.