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Real ID rules aren't holding up travelers, XNA says

Real ID rules aren't holding up travelers, XNA says

Axios15-05-2025

Northwest Arkansas National Airport is seeing "minimal" passengers not in compliance with newly enforced identification rules, spokesperson Olivia Tyler told Axios.
Catch up quick: The federal government set a hard deadline of May 7 for when airports must require enhanced identification like a Real ID, passport or military ID card to board a domestic flight when a standard drivers license or state ID previously sufficed.
But on May 6, the Department of Homeland Security announced those not in compliance would still be able to fly after undergoing extra steps to verify their identities with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
State of play: XNA has a contractor asking travelers at the security checkpoint if they have a Real ID, passport or military ID and directing them to TSA if they do not have those forms of ID, Tyler said.
Overall, it's going smoothly and the airport is not seeing lines backed up because of the new rules, she said.
The latest: Arkansas has issued about 39,000 Real IDs in the past week, bringing the total of active Real IDs in the state to 901,531, Scott Hardin, spokesperson for the state's department of finance and administration, told Axios.
"We have remained in contact with our vendor that prints the REAL ID cards. We reached capacity in our inventory at a couple of offices last week and had to direct customers to nearby offices," Hardin said in an email. "However, we refreshed that inventory the following day."

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