There was a time that people in the Drivers License Bureau didn't want to be in the ID business. I can remember having the head of Utah's DL bureau tell me in no uncertain terms that the drivers license was not an identity document.

Times have changed. I can only imagine that the emergence of REAL ID has given the bureaucrats an idea of how much power there could be in being the primary arbiter of truth. This change is reflected in the sessions at a conference on REAL ID for state bureaucrats that Jim Harper brought to my attention.

Jim quotes one of the blurbs on a session from the conference:

Bringing Your Public Onboard For Smoother Legislature Changes

... [E]very State DMV needs to find a way to educate their public so that they can ensure the legislature changes necessary to become Real ID compliant. So how exactly can you do this? This session will examine how you can change your public's perception as quickly and as cost effectively as possible.

• Listen to your people: Examining the direct impact on your public so that you understand the perception you are trying to change
• Know which marketing methods will be most effective at reaching your public
• Examine how much of your budget a public relations exercise is worth: Measuring cost against outcome

Of course, this isn't anything new. Taxpayers frequently foot the bills for people in government to go to a conference and learn how to advance their agenda. We hope they're doing this for our benefit. Vigorous legislative oversight is the only way to ensure that they are.