Dear Neighbors,
I wanted to take a moment to give you a brief update from the Capitol. Our work continues through the weekend with less than 33 hours until we are required to adjourn. The Governor and legislative leaders are working diligently to find a compromise on the unresolved budget items. Last night, we passed the final compromised Agriculture bill and today we wrapped up Legacy and voted on the final Higher Education bill. We are currently debating the final Environment bill. I remain committed to finishing our work on time.
Real ID- Next Steps
Governor Dayton signed the Real ID bill into law on Thursday. According to Minnesota Driver & Vehicle Services, Minnesota’s Real ID will not be available until sometime in 2018. Now that state law has been changed, Minnesota will be asking the federal government for an extension beyond the deadline of January 22, 2018, which means that current driver’s licenses should work until the Real ID is available. Once the extension is approved, the state will contact federal agencies, TSA included, and let them know we have the extension. A passport will continue to remain an approved document for domestic and overseas travel. Like many of you, I will need to renew my driver’s license before the new Real ID is available.
You can read more about next steps from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety here.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have any additional questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my office.
Please stay in touch as we wrap up the session. I’m still cautiously optimistic the legislature and Governor will come together for a final compromise.
Stay tuned.
Sincerely,
JoAnn Ward
