Letter to the Honorable Susana Martinez, Governor of New Mexico - Regarding the REAL ID Act

Letter

The Honorable Susana Martinez
Governor of New Mexico
490 Old Santa Fe Trail, Room 400
Santa Fe, NM 87501

Dear Governor Martinez:

With the upcoming deadline for enforcement of the REAL ID Act of 2005, we wanted to inform you that we recently spoke with Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to discuss the standards and procedures that will be used as of January 10, 2016 for entering federal buildings and facilities in New Mexico.

Because our state is the home to many secure federal facilities, we requested that DHS immediately contact the Department of Defense (DoD) to ensure that DoD provides the proper guidance to our state's military installations. DHS has clearly stated that residents traveling by air from any state, including New Mexico, "are still able to use a driver's license, or any of the various other forms of identification accepted by the Transportation Security Administration." However, to address misinformation, we requested that DHS provide further clarification about the timeline for REAL ID enforcement for boarding commercial aircraft.

Deputy Secretary Mayorkas assured us that he will direct his office to work with DoD to ensure the state's military installations receive immediate guidance regarding entry and alternate procedures to be made available by each facility. Additionally, the Deputy Secretary informed us that DHS will provide an update for enforcement for boarding aircraft with adequate time for compliance with federal agency procedures.

During our discussion, Deputy Secretary Mayorkas also informed us that it is still possible for the State of New Mexico to request, and receive, an extension of the deadline for REAL ID enforcement. Mr. Mayorkas stated that DHS will grant the state an extension if the Department receives a letter stating that your administration and the leadership of the state House and Senate have an agreement on legislation that ensures REAL ID compliance; that the leadership will bring the bill up for a vote at the upcoming legislative session; and that you will sign the bill into law if it passes. Other states, such as New Hampshire, have requested and been granted extensions based on anticipated actions in upcoming legislative sessions.

Our offices remain in close contact with DHS and we stand ready to support a request for an extension that allows the legislature time to pass a bipartisan, pragmatic solution that ensures New Mexicans can continue to access federal facilities and airports in the months to come.

The ongoing uncertainty about accessing federal facilities is an undue burden on the men and women who work at these facilities. We hope that your administration and the legislature will act expeditiously to resolve this issue.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

U.S. Senator Tom Udall
U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich
U.S. Representative Ben Ray Luján
U.S. Representative Michelle Lujan Grisham