Think you don't need a passport to fly domestically?  Well, if you live in Minnesota - you will as of 2018.

In an effort to make it easier for TSA to secure our country, the Federal government increased security requirements; passports comply while the standard Drivers Licenses that were used in the past didn't.  The Fed allowed states to incorporate changes into their ID programs to make their Drivers License cards comply - with a new Real ID being the end-result. The Real ID would suffice for domestic TSA checkpoints, standard Drivers Licenses would no longer work.

The Federally-required Real ID program has been rolled out across the country, with states changing their Drivers License cards to comply with the requirements.  However, nine states have failed to follow through with the changes - Minnesota being one of them. Because of that fact, Minnesota residents who are looking to board domestic flights will have to provide a passport to do so.

Here is a list of the nine states that don't have complying Real ID's in place:

  • Kentucky
  • Maine
  • Minnesota
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Oklahoma
  • Pennsylvania
  • South Carolina
  • Washington

 

More From KOOL 101.7