New Virginia driver's license focuses on security

RICHMOND

Virginians who fret about how they look in their driver's license photos may feel a little less stressed the next time they're up for a renewal.

Beginning this spring, the state Department of Motor Vehicles will issue redesigned licenses and identification cards with black-and-white pictures.

Enhanced security is the reason for the change, but those concerned about their appearance can take comfort that messy makeup and mismatched clothing won't be as noticeable on the new version.

"We have learned that gray-scale photos are better as far as security goes because it allows the person inspecting the card to focus on the permanent facial features such as the shape of the face, the shape of the lips," said state DMV spokeswoman Melanie Stokes. "In other words, you won't focus on alterable features such as hair color or eye color."

The Virginia Beach Buckner location is to be one of the earliest sites to make the switch, in mid-April.

The shift away from color photos is one of about 25 security features intended to make the cards tamper-proof. Current licenses are made of laminated layers that can be peeled off and altered.

Another aspect of the design is a second, smaller photo of the driver that will be visible from both sides of the license. Virginia will be one of three jurisdictions, along with Sweden and a Canadian province, whose licenses bear that characteristic, according to the DMV.

Other publicly revealed security features include laser engraving, hard-to-duplicate ink colors in the background design and holograms visible under black light. Some security details are known only to law enforcement officials.

The price for all that technology is $6.5 million annually in production costs, an increase from the $2 million Virginia now spends on license expenses.

Another trade-off for the new design is convenience: The practice of issuing same-day licenses at regional DMV offices will be eliminated.

Motorists can still apply at area offices, but licenses will be printed at one central location and mailed in a matter of days. Fifteen other states issue licenses from a central location, Stokes noted.

One-by-one, local DMV offices will transition to the new method of license delivery this spring and summer. Based on renewal rates, it will take about eight years for all 5.3 million state licenses and identification cards to be converted to the new format, officials said.

Anticipated benefits of the new licenses are fraud reduction - in the past five years, 29 DMV employees have been arrested on such charges - and bringing Virginia closer to conformity with provisions of the federal Real ID Act, if the state opts to comply with it.

Well, that and the vanity factor.

Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com