Tennessee is aiming to join the growing number of states across the United States that issue digital driver’s licenses (DDLs) to their residents.
The bill, SB 572 (pdf), is currently making its way through the Tennessee Senate. Introduced by Democratic state Sen. Heidi Campbell, the legislation directs the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) to study state laws (and laws in other states) and the technology required to implement DDLs as an optional format.
TDOT has until Jan. 1, 2024, to report its findings to both the state’s Senate and House of Representatives.
The Digital Driver’s License Trend
According to the Secure Technology Alliance, DDLs are “gaining traction in at least 30 U.S. states.”
In 2018, Louisiana was the first state to fully launch a DDL in the United States with its “LA Wallet,” which was made available to the public on the Apple App store, according to a statement released by Democratic Louisiana Gov. Bel Edwards.
Soon after, in November 2019, Democratic Colorado Gov. Jared Polis announced Colorado’s DDL launch in a state-sponsored “MyColorado” app, a digital wallet containing Colorado’s Digital ID (a driver’s license) along with other state-recognized documents including vaccination records and important documents such as insurance cards and vehicle registrations.
In 2021, Arizona, Delaware, Mississippi, and Oklahoma began creating their own versions of DDL with Mobile ID, an app created by French security company Idemia, upgradedpoints.com reported.
In 2022, Maryland authorized a DDL that can be used to “get through security checkpoints at two Washington region’s airports,” The Washington Post reported.
In September 2021, Apple announced that it had started working with several states, including Arizona, Georgia, Connecticut, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Utah to “seamlessly and securely” allow their residents to add their driver’s licenses or state IDs to Apple Wallet on their iPhones and Apple Watches.
The Secure Technology Alliance reported in an event summary to its members in December 2021 that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) “fully supports” the DDL movement “for travel authentication” and is preparing “to begin its phased rollout, with mDL [Mobile Driver’s License] Apple Wallet integration being its first step.”
To date, only three states have actually incorporated their DDLs into Apple Wallet—Arizona, Colorado, and Maryland—according to Apple.
