OK travelers need to get REAL IDs by October

Tahlequah Daily Press

By Grant D. Crawford

Mar 23, 2021

Oklahomans who plan to fly anywhere after Oct. 1 will need to get an Oklahoma REAL ID license or identification card.

The REAL ID is an effort by states and the federal government to bolster the reliability and accuracy of state-issued IDs, mainly to inhibit terrorists' ability to use fraudulent IDs. The Department of Homeland Security has extended the deadline for the state to become REAL ID-compliant several times, with the most recent deadline set at Oct. 1, 2021.

Brenda Brooks, Cherokee County tag agent, doesn't expect the state to get another extension, though.

"We've got it in place now, so I don't think that's going to be an option anymore," she said.

The Cherokee County Tag Agency had been dealing with some delays since the beginning of the year, working along with others to issue the new forms of identification. There were times last month when the agency's equipment would go down for two to three hours.

View the full article: TahlequahDailyPress.com