The State - in this case meaning Maine, the Federal Government, the towns and other authorities - is collecting massive amounts of data on citizens. Ultimately this adds up to destruction of our Fourth Amendment protections.

From the Manchester Union Leader

The REAL ID Act is a federal law that blackmails states into producing federally approved drivers licenses and identification cards. If a state is not participating in REAL ID by 2008, the federal government threatens to bar its citizens from air travel, entry to courthouses and other areas and activities controlled by federal checkpoints. REAL ID also requires states to put information about their citizens into a massive federal database.

Maine needs an office of data privacy to protect citizens from surveillance and marketers, much as the Public Advocate speaks for citizens in telecom and utility proceedings.

The office of data privacy will go further. It will have authority over all queries run on data, the merging of data from different sources, and the permissions given to others to buy/sell this data.

The office will be responsible for making public all data structures, the types of queries and types of authorizations. Citizens should know what data is kept on them and who gets to use it.

What information is kept associated with your Driver's License? Who gets to use it? To whom does the State sell it? Who has been using it and how?

Governance will by board similar to Citizen Trade Commission.

MCLU on LD 2017 and 1885.

More on New Hampshire's take on REAL ID act.

Bravo to the NH House for voting in favor of HB 1582. REAL ID is going to be an expensive violation of our privacy. Anyone who doesnt think that a national database provides a wonderful opportunity for hacking, identity theft, and selling of information is unconscious. The threat of terrorism must not be used to manipulate us into sacrificing our civil liberties and our privacy. REAL ID goes into effect in 2008. There is still plenty of time to stand up and say NO. Other states will very likely be emboldened to do the same. To suggest that we comply now and change it later is weak and cowardly. Trying to change a system afterward is difficult and costly. Far better to not implement it in the first place. If non-compliance means we cant enter federal buildings, I guess that means we wont need to be paying federal taxes, either. Its about time we rebel against the constant threats to our civil liberties and our privacy. NH is just the state to lead that rebellion.