Richard Varn, the Chief Information Officer for the State of Iowa testified that the current system of identity is so broken that it "is more likely to actually enable identity theft and fraud rather than prevent it." Varn also noted "Our life document systems for recording and providing proof of birth, marriage, name change, and death are inadequate to the task of supporting the issuance of identity and the extension of privileges and benefits. An enhanced life document issuance and verification system is essential to identity security."
Varn identified three parts to the creation and authentication of identity: (1) something you know, (2) something you have, and (3) something you are. The issuing authorities, however, use only one or two of these factors to establish an identity and extend all of the privileges associated with an identity. As a result, the vital pieces of personal identification, such as social security number, mother's maiden name, or address cannot be adequately protected. He described the current system as disjointed, uncoordinated, and reactive, as well as easily bypassed and abused.
Varn noted that the issue of identity security is a process and not a product, such as a driver's license, and authorities at all levels were only just beginning that process. He recommended common, equivalent state birth and death records that would provide the bedrock reference for issuance of identification documents and the extension of privileges associated with those identities. For a non-citizen visiting the U.S., federal systems should create an equivalent reference system to document beginning, duration, course, and end of the person's stay.
Varn also recommended establishing an identity-security clearing house that would link the documents used to create identities and provide a common infrastructure for verifying identities. The clearing house would be based on the single birth and death certificates, and would allow for issuance of one identification card, such as driver's licenses, per each identity. The state motor vehicle departments would also link their photographic databases to the birth certificates.
This identity clearing house would provide a way to check identities, and raise warning flags if someone seeks tries to get multiple copies of driver's licenses or other documents. It also would relieve other authorities or organizations, such as airlines, from setting up separate identity-checking systems.
Yes, there's a problem, but is a national ID the solution?
But the idea of standardized driver's licenses, particularly if configured as a national identity card, has plenty of opposition. At the hearings, Brad Jansen, deputy director of the Center for Technology Policy at the Free Congress Foundation, argued against standardizing drivers licenses, mainly because they would become a defacto national identification card. He listed several arguments supporting his case against national IDs:
