ME bill would rescind aspects of REAL ID compliance
May 05, 2009
A bill to repeal portions of the state law that brought Maine in compliance with the Real ID anti-terrorism law was the subject of a public hearing in Augusta today. The state Transportation Committee heard strongly-worded testimony both in favor and against the bill, which among other things, wants to remove the requirement that license and ID applicants prove they are in the country legally.
Democratic state Sen. Dennis Damon of Trenton says his LD 1357, An Act To Protect the Privacy of Maine Residents under the Driver's License Laws, removes parts of the Real ID law that infringe on civil liberties. The Real ID law was passed last spring under pressure from the federal government to tighten Maine's driver's license requirements.
'The Real ID concept on a national level is felt by some and me included to be overly intrusive, a taking away some of my privacy and some of my rights as a United States citizen,' Damon says.
The MPBN News (Bangor, ME)
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