Waldron denounces DMV for flawed REAL ID process

SACRAMENTO – Assembly Republican Leader Marie Waldron issued a statement Dec. 21, in response to news that the Department of Motor Vehicles waited a month to notify Californians about the federal government’s rejection of the state’s REAL ID residency verification process and continued to issue cards that it knew would require additional documentation.

Following is Waldron’s statement:

“It’s completely unacceptable that the DMV knew about this issue for a month before even acknowledging something was wrong. The DMV has only been requiring one form of identification to verify residence (current lease, utility bill, etc.) but Department of Homeland Security stated that two forms of identification were needed. This is unacceptable and flies in the face of security for our citizens, which is what REAL ID was created for in the first place.

“The state must fast-track everybody who received a REAL ID since the DMV was notified of this problem to avoid further delay, wasted taxpayer dollars, lost wages and productivity. I sincerely hope we can work together with the federal government to resolve this issue and minimize the disruption to people who have already been inconvenienced by long wait times and poor service at the DMV.”

Submitted by the office of Assemblymember Marie Waldron.