North Carolina is moving forward with plans to implement mobile driver’s licenses, which would allow residents to store digital versions of their driver’s licenses in smartphone digital wallets. The North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) has conducted a feasibility study on issuing mobile driver’s licenses, which was presented to a joint meeting of the House and Senate Committees on Transportation Appropriations. The initiative follows similar successful implementations across multiple U.S. states.
The NCDMV study recommends offering electronic cards as a no-cost add-on to traditional licenses to increase adoption and simplify implementation. “The rationale there is just that there would be more uptake. And it would be a little easier to implement without having to worry about, did someone pay their fee, and did they pay it to us or to a third-party vendor, just to make sure that everybody would have access to this,” explained Aaron Cornell of the legislature’s Fiscal Research Division.
HB 199, signed into law in July 2024, authorizes the issuance of mobile driver’s licenses in North Carolina, with implementation possible as early as July 2025. The General Assembly must still determine whether mobile driver’s licenses can be used for voting or document notarization, and appropriate necessary funds for the program. Implementation will require additional staffing and IT support for DMV call centers and technical assistance, as well as contracting with a third-party vendor to create the digital licenses.
The initiative comes as North Carolina’s DMV faces pressure to improve its services. DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, who has been actively advocating for mobile driver’s license implementation, has announced plans to step down once a successor is appointed by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. The agency is also under investigation by newly elected State Auditor Dave Boliek, and lawmakers have commissioned a study on potentially privatizing DMV services.
Several other states have already implemented mobile driver’s licenses with varying approaches. Arizona provides mobile licenses at no additional cost through a solution developed by IDEMIA that supports both Apple and Samsung digital wallets. Louisiana charges a fee for its program, while New York’s mobile ID service has gained significant traction with over 200,000 users and is recognized by the Transportation Security Administration at select U.S. airport terminals.
The implementation of mobile driver’s licenses follows the ISO 18013-5 standard, which ensures interoperability and security across different jurisdictions and devices. The standard has become increasingly important as more states adopt mobile ID solutions and seek to ensure their compatibility with federal identification requirements and cross-border acceptance.
Sources: WUNC, Berkeley, CA, Gadget Hacks, Echostar Corp, Keesing Platform
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