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Well, it now appears the feds are finally getting serious, setting a May 7 deadline for enforcement.

Maybe.

The Transportation Security Administration — the folks who check you out before you can get through security — already has proposed a rule to keep the deadline — but delay full enforcement until May 7, 2027.

Still, Bill Lamoreaux with the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Department of Transportation, said it makes sense to act sooner than later. And, if nothing else, it avoids what could be a rush when all this really becomes enforceable — whether this May or two years from now.

Consider: The state has issued nearly 7.6 million identification cards. That includes not just driver licenses but other documents like non-operator IDs to those who don’t drive, including children.

The number may be inflated a bit because it also could include ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ns who have moved out of state but never got a replacement license at their new home, meaning the one issued here was never canceled.

But out of all that, Lamoreaux said only 2.35 million of those are Real ID compliant, meaning the holders have come to Motor Vehicle Division and provided the paperwork necessary to get the document the TSA and other federal agencies will recognize — whenever that kicks in.

That leaves about 5.2 million without such a document.

It is true that not everyone needs a Real ID, and not just because you’re not planning to get on a commercial flight or go to a federal building. Equally acceptable is a valid passport.

But that means having to carry around another document, something otherwise unnecessary for domestic air travel.

And the document mandate doesn’t apply to those younger than 18.

What is required, even for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ns who already have a driver’s license, is a face-to-face visit with staffers at MVD and possession of several pieces of information.

The most important is proof of identity, meaning an original or certified birth certificate, a U.S. passport or a passport card.

Applicants need to provide two documents that show ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ residency with your name on it. Options include utility bills, bank statements, insurance policies and even an MVD-issued vehicle registration card.

Lamoreaux said even junk mail with your name and address also will suffice.

But in all cases, the names have to match. Nicknames do not. And if a name has been changed through marriage or divorce, a copy of that document is needed.

Finally, all applicants need a social security number, though it is not necessary to actually present the card.

After all that, you get a new license with a star in the upper right corner — the signal to TSA and others that this is an enhanced ID.

But be prepared to pay an extra $25 for the enhanced license.

The other downside, if you will, is these new licenses are good for only eight years.

By contrast, once someone gets a regular ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ license it is good until the 65th birthday, though there is a requirement to get a new photo every 12 years. For those older than 65 a license is valid for five years, with a requirement for a new vision test at each renewal.

Then there’s that requirement for a face-to-face visit for a Real ID.

It is possible to make an appointment with MVD, though Lamoreaux points out that doesn’t mean you’ll be seen at the exact time reserved. Instead, he said, it allows those who arrive at the scheduled time to skip the waiting line of those who showed up without an appointment and are willing to wait.

If it seems like all this has been a long time in coming, you wouldn’t be wrong.

Congress approved the requirement in 2005 in the wake of the 2001 hijacking of airplanes that were flown into the two World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon and a fourth that was grounded by passengers before it could hit the White House. The anticipated date of enforcement was 2010.

The first response of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ lawmakers, however, was to pass a law in 2008 refusing to participate amid fears that the new licenses — and the linked databases that would be required — essentially would create a national ID card.

Then-Gov. Janet Napolitano signed the refusal. But she said her concern was less about privacy than that the federal government was not offering up any money to cover the costs.

It took until 2015 — with Department of Homeland Security threatening to start sending away ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ns with regular state licenses at airports by January 2016 — for lawmakers to finally authorize the enhanced licenses.

But that 2016 enforcement never took place. And the deadline kept getting pushed back, the most recent due to COVID, with it now standing at May 7.

Or not.

In a news release earlier this year, the TSA published a proposed rule to “provide federal agencies with necessary flexibility’’ in enforcement.

“The proposed rule does not extend the Real ID deadline,’’ the agency said, meaning that May 7 date remains.

“Instead, it would allow TSA to consider a phased enforcement approach to Real ID implementation,’’ the agency said, warning that travelers without Real ID or other acceptable identification after that date “could face delays at airport security checkpoints.’’