Reason.com - Free Minds and Free Markets
Reason logo Reason logo
  • Latest
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Subscribe
    • Crossword
  • Video
  • Podcasts
    • All Shows
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie
    • The Soho Forum Debates
    • Just Asking Questions
    • The Best of Reason Magazine
    • Why We Can't Have Nice Things
  • Volokh
  • Newsletters
  • Donate
    • Donate Online
    • Donate Crypto
    • Ways To Give To Reason Foundation
    • Torchbearer Society
    • Planned Giving
  • Subscribe
    • Reason Plus Subscription
    • Print Subscription
    • Gift Subscriptions
    • Subscriber Support

Login Form

Create new account
Forgot password

National ID

New York residents line up at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to apply for a REAL ID. | Niyi Fote/ZUMAPRESS/Newscom

National ID

DMV Officials Issued Driver's Licenses for Cash. Why Will REAL ID Be Any Different?

Bureaucratic requirements impose burdens only on people not inclined to break the law.

J.D. Tuccille | 7.9.2025 7:00 AM

People in a long line, seen from above, waiting to get a REAL ID at an Illinois Department of Motor Vehicles. | TANNEN MAURY/UPI/Newscom

Surveillance

With REAL ID, America Now Has National ID Cards and Internal Passports

To make us safer, the feds required standardized ID and one-stop shopping for identity thieves.

J.D. Tuccille | 5.23.2025 7:00 AM

Real ID against an orange background | lllustration: Eddie Marshall | Rickk6rj | Dreamstime.com | Midjourney

Bureaucracy

Is REAL ID Actually Happening?

The law was passed 20 years ago, and enforcement finally looms.

Emma Camp | 4.24.2025 3:25 PM

Large image on homepages | Cory Doctorow/flickr

Privacy

National I.D. By Any Other Name Still Stinks

A patchwork of state-level systems accomplishes what Americans have specifically rejected, and perhaps far more.

Alec Ward | 1.30.2018 1:35 PM

Large image on homepages | Wikicommons, US Dept of Homeland Security, CC

Policy

How Immigration Reform Will Harm U.S. Citizens

E-verify means new restrictions on both immigrants and citizens.

Steve Chapman | 6.6.2013 12:00 PM

  • About
  • Browse Topics
  • Events
  • Staff
  • Jobs
  • Donate
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Shop
  • Amazon
Reason Facebook@reason on XReason InstagramReason TikTokReason YoutubeApple PodcastsReason on FlipboardReason RSS

© 2025 Reason Foundation | Accessibility | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Take Reason's short survey for a chance to win $300
Take Reason's short survey for a chance to win $300
Take Reason's short survey for a chance to win $300