DENVER - Congress’ decision two years ago to create a de facto national identification card flew below the radar, tucked into a spending bill and barely causing a stir before it was approved.

But legislators in Colorado and elsewhere are waking up to the consequences of the Real ID Act, a proposal that the National Conference of State Legislatures estimates will cost states $11 billion during the next five years.

A wave of opposition is swelling, but residents of states that do not comply with the law by 2010 will not be able to board airplanes or enter federal courthouses.

The act requires that states issue driver’s licenses and ID cards that have specific information, that issuers of the licenses scan birth certificates and other proof of citizenship, and that states’ information be accessible to the federal government for a national database.

Intended as an antiterrorism weapon, it will prevent illegal immigrants from obtaining a driver’s license and restrict their freedom of movement, backers say.

Conservatives and liberals have assailed the legislation recently as a violation of civil rights because it demands more information from residents and then keeps it permanently at the government’s fingertips. In addition to being a costly mandate for states, it makes citizens vulnerable to identity theft by keeping their most important information in a central place that could be hacked into, critics say.

A resolution written largely by the American Civil Liberties Union that passed through the Colorado Legislature without opposition details those concerns and goes a step further. It states that the General Assembly will pass no law to facilitate implementation of the Real ID Act and will spend money only on a comprehensive analysis of the costs of implementing it or toward a constitutional challenge mounted by the attorney general.

But with the law stating that noncompliant IDs must be stamped and not accepted for federal purposes such as passing through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints, the question is: How far will states go to rebel against the national government?

“It’s a tough deal. I would like to say we’ll fight it all the way,” said Rep. Jack Pommer, D-Boulder, sponsor of the resolution. “On the other hand, I don’t want to be responsible for no one in Colorado being able to get on an airplane.”

In one sense, Colorado is lucky, having made many security upgrades on its licenses in recent years. Joan Vecchi, director of the state Motor Vehicle Division, estimates the largest remaining cost will be $1.4 million to buy scanners to record birth certificates and other documents that DMV workers now check by sight.

Pommer fears that even if the state budget won’t feel the pinch of the law, Colorado residents will. Citizens who have been renewing licenses for years will have to find birth certificates or passports.

After the required information, including a person’s date of birth and signature, is programmed into a strip on the back of the ID card, problems with identity theft could begin, Pommer said.

Some department stores now swipe licenses to verify a person’s identity when they write

checks, meaning that information on the new license would be captured in their computers, he said.

Another possible problem, according to Pommer, is outsourcing: If the government can’t find enough American companies to do the voluminous work of preparing cards, would it outsource this function to another country?

“It’s legislation passed in the wake of 9/11 with very good intentions that has far-reaching implications for the civil liberties of citizens,” said Rep. Bob Gardner, R-Colorado Springs.

“The states, as they have looked at it, have determined the costs are going to be huge. . . and the return of security is not going to be equal to that. People want security, but they don’t want their civil liberties compromised.”

So far, 16 states have passed resolutions similar to Colorado’s requesting delay or repeal of the act, and 22 others are considering such action, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Only Indiana and Virginia have approved laws clearing the way for full implementation.

But the message doesn’t seem to be getting to members of Congress, who have appropriated just $340 million to help the states so far.

Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., said he hadn’t focused on the law and didn’t know about the implementation problems. A spokesman for Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn of Colorado Springs said he has “real concerns about it from a civil libertarian standpoint” but has not received any communication on the act.

Colorado’s Transportation Legislative Review Committee, a panel of legislators that examines transportation law between sessions, will discuss the Real ID Act and its effect on the state today.

The state’s only plans are to ask for an extension of the May 2008 implementation deadline to January 2010, as every state in the country is expected to do, Vecchi, of the Motor Vehicle Division, said.

After that, the fate of the Real ID Act may depend on the reaction of citizens, who ultimately may weigh in on whether it is an overly intrusive law or just a reality of life in a post-Sept. 11 world.

“Everything I understand about the Real ID Act at this point is it is going to be a major burden to the states, a real intrusion on citizens and their civil liberties,” Gardner said.

“But it doesn’t appear that the states have a lot of options. They’re going to have to comply, and to not do so is going to have consequences that are not acceptable. You don’t want your citizens not to travel.”

CONTACT THE WRITER: (303)837-0613 or ed.sealover@gazette.com

WHAT THE REAL ID ACT REQUIRES

- States must issue driver’s licenses and ID cards that contain at least nine specific pieces of information, including the person’s date of birth and signature and a digital photo of the person.

- ID card applicants must present one of 10 acceptable documents, including a birth certificate, a passport or a U.S. certificate of citizenship, and the document must be scanned into a system and kept for at least 10 years. States must verify Social Security numbers.

- States are required to ensure the physical security of locations where ID cards are made and must perform financial and criminal history checks on employees who make them. This will not affect Colorado and other states that contract to have their licenses made out of state.

- States must provide to all other states electronic access to information contained in motor vehicle databases.

- States that do not comply with these rules must state on their ID cards that they are not accepted as federal identification, and those cards cannot be used to board federally regulated commercial aircraft, to access federal facilities such as courthouses or to enter nuclear power plants.