Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias announced that Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation enabling Illinois residents to start using mobile driver’s licenses and state IDs. Bill HB 4592 was sponsored by State Representative Kam Buckner (26th District-Chicago) and State Senator Michael Hastings (19th District-Frankfort) and is part of Alexi Giannoulias’s commitment to modernizing the Secretary of State office while catching up to other states that already have secure mobile driver’s licenses and state ID programs. Giannoulias’s office hopes to have the program next year after testing to ensure a safe and secure system.
“Whether it’s offering more services online or introducing products like mobile driver’s licenses and identification cards, we want to leverage new, secure technology to create efficiencies that better serve Illinoisians,” said Giannoulias, whose office pushed for the bill. “We’re excited to reach a point where we can implement mobile IDs in a manner that ensures our roads are safe and that the privacy of Illinoisans is protected, while still providing law enforcement, businesses and medical professionals, which rely on physical driver’s licenses and identification cards, the information they require.”
“Other states already have mobile driver’s licenses and ID cards, and this bill gives our residents the same ability to have a mobile card if they want one, while still providing them with the option of a traditional physical card,” Buckner said. “We can keep folks safe while providing them with the convenience and benefit of modern technology.”
“Mobile driver’s license and ID cards provide our residents with the option to protect their personal information,” Hastings said. “There is no reason age verification should require residents to disclose sensitive information such as their address when we have the technology available for mobile cards that allow for selective information disclosure.”
This legislation will not replace physical driver’s licenses; instead, mobile IDs will act as a companion to a physical card. Illinois joins 12 other states offering mobile forms of identification (including bordering states Iowa and Missouri), while at least 18 other states are currently working toward the implementation.