How many Americans are actually ready for REAL ID? Compliance crosses partisan, geographic bounds

With REAL ID’s deadline approaching Wednesday, there are still swaths of the country where travelers could run into trouble trying to hit the skies for summer break.

Although at least 12 states are more than 90% REAL ID-compliant, many still have significant portions of their populations who will need a passport to fly.

The states in the proverbial green include Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming as well as Washington, D.C.

Texas reported 98% compliance, Mississippi 97%, Hawaii and Utah 96%, according to a CBS survey.

New Jersey has recently made headlines for its low REAL ID compliance, but it tops the nation in passport ownership, with 69% of residents holding one, according to data from the Center for American Progress and Swift Passport Services.

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A TSA agent, DMV facility, and lines of travelers at a U.S. airport are seen in this split image. A 2005 Real ID law takes hold on May 7, 2025, after a 20-year delay, prompting a frenzied 11th-hour surge of travelers to their local DMVs to obtain the new identification. (Getty Images)

Delaware, California, New York, Massachusetts and Alaska also ranked high.

Though geographically diverse, all the states – except Delaware – serve as major international travel hubs, home to airports like Ted Stevens, Logan, and JFK. The First State, however, is only a short distance from Philadelphia International Airport.

By contrast, the states with the lowest proportion of passport holders tend to be ones without major airports: West Virginia, Mississippi, Kentucky and Alabama.

What effect that may have on REAL ID-era travel remains unclear.

Those states do, however, have regional Amtrak stops like Harpers Ferry, Jackson, Ashland and Birmingham, respectively. REAL ID is not required for intrastate or interstate rail travel.

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A REAL ID is an identification that includes a star emblazoned in the upper corner to denote the holder has provided additional identifying documentation like a Social Security card to a government agent. It will be required for air travel and to enter most government or military installations.

The law requiring REAL ID was passed in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, but has been delayed several times by multiple presidential administrations.

Last week, Wingate University political science professor Dr. Magdalena Krajewska – an expert on national ID cards – told the school’s news outlet she was surprised the delays have taken so long.

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“I feel like all of us who were alive during that time, all of us who witnessed this as it was happening, thought the U.S. would do everything to prevent something similar from happening again,” she said.

Krajewska added it is important that people also know they don’t need a REAL ID to enter less-secure government locations like a post office.