Some things feel like a fact of life: The sun rises in the morning and sets in the evening. Winter turns to spring, which turns to summer, which turns to fall. And the deadline to get a REAL ID gets pushed back.

That last one may seem more in flux than the other examples, but it’s been true for nearly a quarter of a century. So what’s keeping this 9/11-era law from being fully enforced? And why haven’t we just given up on implementing it? We answer that and more on this week’s episode of Explain It to Me.

Our story begins during the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The 9/11 Commission wrote a list of recommendations, including securing planes’ cockpits — and making sure there’s a way to check who people are when they board a flight. In response to those recommendations, Congress passed the REAL ID Act in 2005. States were supposed to have three years to update state ID requirements. This included adding physical security features and storing copies of documents in a database that other states can access as well.

The deadline was extended over and over. Now it’s 2025, and while the deadline is still May 7, the enforcement might be “phased.” My Explain It to Me colleagues and I spoke with quite a few people who all had different perspectives.

Below are excerpts of our........

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