Now serving U0171 at Window 26.
Now serving LN391 at Window 13.
Now serving WF254 at Window 3.
Last week, my wife and I arrived at the local Department of Motor Vehicles office with documents in hand to complete our Real ID applications. Drivers’ licenses are no longer good enough for domestic travel identification purposes, and Real IDs are supposed to add a new layer of security.
Walking through the DMV building’s front doors, we ascended an escalator to the second floor where we asked the guards for directions. Coldly, one gestured, in effect, over there somewhere. Someone else entered our QR codes and issued us numbers. “How will we be called?” I asked. I was told “By your number” and to take seats.
We sat down. Through an unusually clear speaker, an AI-generated woman’s voice was saying:
Now serving U0171 at Window 26.
Now serving LN391 at Window 13.
Now serving WF254 at Window 3.
Pause, then several more “serving/window” calls. We realized we weren’t going to be free to distract ourselves with reading, Instagram or that day’s New York Times crossword. We had to concentrate on the voice’s hypnotic repetition to make sure not to miss our numbers. Fortunately, we had made our appointments at the same time, so our numbers were consecutive.
At last we were summoned to Window 16, but only to have our photographs taken. The woman gave us good and clear directions. Photos taken, she told us to return to our seats and wait once again for our numbers to be called.
Time passed.
Now serving GX105 at Window 7.
Now serving LR273 at Window 34.
Now serving WF276 at Window 45.
Now serving LN097 at Window 22.
It was so mesmerizing that I forgot our numbers. Laura had to remind me. Another half hour passed.
There were no signs of celebrities, CEOs or other VIPs. Afterwards, Gemini would inform me that such people get around the DMV process with concierge services.
An hour passed. Sometime after the seventieth minute, the last time I checked my watch while waiting, we were summoned.
“Your utility bills?” the man behind the glass said.
“We pay them online, but we have emailed proof on our phones.”
“I’m sorry, but that isn’t acceptable. We need actual printed bills.”
“We could print out the emails.”
“Those would be copies, which aren’t acceptable.”
“We’ve brought other mail sent to our address. Here’s the letter with confirmation of home insurance.”
“Sorry, not on the list.”
Fortunately, we both had our decades-old Social Security cards and passports. They weren’t sufficient to meet all the requirements, but at least some.
Out of our hearing, the young man consulted with two apparent supervisors and returned with affidavits for us to sign. We swore we really did live at the address we’d given.
Other Real ID applicants we know have been less fortunate. One friend, a healthcare worker, is an independent contractor and so could not produce a W-2 confirming employment. When she produced the 1099 on her phone evidencing the payments she earned from her work, the attendant told her to go downstairs and make a copy. That meant leaving the line and coming back to wait again. This time, when her number was called, a different woman at a different window refused the 1099. After spending her entire day at DMV, our friend left without a Real ID.
How many people in today’s world could satisfy all the government’s Real ID requirements? So many of us get our utility bills online. And how many have miraculously preserved their Social Security cards for years and even decades? What about all the professionals who can’t produce W-2s?
As a result, nearly every applicant is thrown on the discretion of strangers. We were fortunate. The man who processed our application recognized that we had legitimately documented our residence, even if not with the limited range of documents the law requires. By contrast, our friend the healthcare professional found an appropriately flexible stranger, only to have that person replaced by a play-it-strictly-by-the-rules stranger.
The Real ID process is a symptom of a larger American practice making it hard to satisfy legal obligations. For example, in the UK and other countries, tax authorities recognize that employers, investment companies and other organizations must file their clients’ tax-related data with the government. The government uses these data to fill out tax returns that are then sent to individuals to review and, if accurate, sign. American authorities also have these data, but Americans are required to fill out tax returns either on their own or with the assistance of paid consultants. The Biden administration created a “direct filing” program to simplify tax reporting for many filers, but the Trump administration rescinded it.
Relieved that three hours of frustration were behind us, we walked out of the DMV building into a lovely spring day. All told, we’d been there three hours, not counting to-and-from travel time. Little did we then know we were among the lucky ones. Is it any wonder Americans dislike government? Or rather, is that the real purpose—the Real ID purpose?
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