FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) – Kentuckians can now apply for Real IDs in Frankfort, a move that comes as transportation officials work to open more regional centers for the travel-friendly driver’s licenses.
The new IDs previously had been available to people living in specific counties. In the Louisville area, for example, only Shelby and Owen county residents could apply at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Frankfort headquarters.
But Gov. Andy Beshear and Transportation Secretary Jim Gray unveiled changes to the program on Wednesday, allowing all Kentuckians to travel to the cabinet’s office at 200 Mero Street to obtain a new license. The Transportation Cabinet is overseeing the Real ID effort.
Kentucky abandoned its longstanding Real ID approach last September with a federal deadline looming. Starting in October, an existing license won’t be accepted when boarding a commercial flight in the U.S.; a passport, military ID or Real ID will be needed.
“We are not going to restrict this office that is open to any particular list of counties or regions,” Beshear said at a news conference. “If you are in Frankfort, you can come to this facility and get your Real ID.”
“While other facilities that are opening around this state are geared toward specific communities, it is my commitment that no one will be turned away,” he said. "Anybody who has the documentation that is necessary can get that ID.”
Regional centers in Paducah and Somerset opened Wednesday, joining Frankfort and Bowling Green in a proposed 12-city rollout. There was no update on when Louisville will begin accepting Real ID applications.
But cabinet officials toured potential locations in Louisville during the past week and could make a decision on the first site in the next month, according to Jefferson County Circuit Court Clerk David Nicholson's office.
Gray said that by early summer all of the regional Real ID centers in the state should be open.
Gray, a former Lexington mayor who Beshear appointed to run the Transportation Cabinet, called Real ID a “moving train that we inherited,” while the governor said his administration “inherited a mess.”
Last September, former Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration announced the state was dropping the years-in-the-making plan to let county circuit court clerks handle Real ID applications. Those county offices process and issue the current driver’s licenses.
The state’s former Vehicle Regulation Commissioner, Matt Henderson, had overseen the state rollout. He has resigned, Transportation Cabinet spokeswoman Naitore Djigbenou said.
Beshear announced Wednesday that a former assistant attorney general, Sarah Jackson, will serve as Real ID project manager and report directly to Gray.
“You’re going to see more Real ID regional licensing offices coming on board in the coming months as we expand access to more Kentuckians,” Jackson said. “We’re confident that all Kentuckians who want a Real ID license will have the opportunity to apply for one at a regional office within a reasonable driving distance from their home or place of work before the October 1 enforcement date.”
For now, she said people should visit drive.ky.gov and review a list of documents needed to apply for the Real IDs
To get a Real ID, people will need to bring one proof-of-identity document, such as an original or certified birth certificate or passport; one document that proves a social security number, such as an unlaminated social security card or current year W-2 wage statement; and two proofs of residence. Those could include a property tax bill, utility statement or lease agreement.
Kentucky, like other states, must comply with the new license standards as part of the 2005 Real ID Act, a response to the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.
The Transportation Cabinet plans to open 12 regional offices this year where people can apply for Real IDs.
Those cities are Paducah, Madisonville, Bowling Green, Elizabethtown, Louisville, Lexington, Florence, Somerset, Manchester, Jackson, Prestonsburg and Morehead.
For now, county circuit clerks will continue to issue licenses that aren’t Real ID-compliant.
The Transportation Cabinet continues to pursue sites for the offices. It has secured leases in government-owned buildings in Morehead and Madisonville, Djigbenou said. Earlier this week, a legislative committee reviewed a lease for an office in Lexington.
The state will pay $115,587.20 annually to Ken Isaacs Properties LLC to use an office at 141 Leestown Center Way in Lexington. That’s part of an existing lease with state government.
The rental rate -- $16.40 per square foot – is higher than the $14.35 average for leased space in Fayette County, according to a report to the Kentucky legislature’s capital projects and bond oversight committee.
Beshear said he plans to allocate $4 million for the current fiscal year’s Real ID program in his upcoming budget.
This story will be updated.
Reach reporter Marcus Green at 502-585-0825, mgreen@wdrb.com, on Twitter or on Facebook. Copyright 2020 WDRB Media. All rights reserved.
