Statewide, Iowa — Federal officials are again pushing back the deadline for when travelers from Iowa and elsewhere need that little gold star on their ID cards to board domestic flights.
Jessica Mayle, regional spokeswoman for the US Transportation Security Administration, says the so called Real ID won’t be required now until 2025. While she suspects some travelers will put off the process, Mayle says there’s more involved in getting the ID than just renewing your last driver’s license.
The list of documents that might be required during the process includes a passport, marriage certificate, bank statement and a Social Security card. Not only does the two-year extension give residents the opportunity to better prepare, but it’s also being used to help driver’s license stations across the country.
Kayla Burkett is the product integration coordinator at the Iowa DOT.
Nearly two-thirds of Iowans have already gotten their Real ID as Burkett says the tally for the state is now at 64-percent. In the next two years, she says the Department of Homeland Security wants to make it a simpler process for those who still need to get theirs.
The program was designed in the wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, and was originally scheduled to go into practice in 2008, but has been repeatedly delayed.
