I recently went to renew my driver’s license and I took along my birth certificate so that I could get Real ID at the same time. The clerk said that my birth certificate was not valid for Real ID because it was a federal birth certificate, not a state one.

My birth certificate says, “This is to advise you that there is preserved in the State Office for the registration of vital statistics at Augusta, Maine a Record of Birth, as follows,” etc., and lists my birth.

It is my understanding that Real ID is a federal program, so I do not understand why a federal birth certificate is not valid for Real ID.

I would have also taken along my passport, but that has expired.

Oh, well, I do not expect to have any need for Real ID anyway. I just wanted to get Real ID to be a good, obedient citizen.

David W. Knudsen

Gray