Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder believes Missouri law was violated when the names and information of approximately 163,000 residents with conceal-carry endorsements was sent by the Missouri Highway Patrol to a federal investigator. “Gov. (Jay) Nixon’s administration has misled Missourians since the first week of March saying they were not doing what they later admitted they were doing,” Kinder told The Record in a telephone interview. It recently was revealed that Janet Napolitano, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, sent a letter to Nixon on March 17, 2010, thanking the Missouri governor for his efforts to comply with the Real ID Act of 2005. Missouri Department of Revenue officials called that letter a “form” letter and point out that they are not complying with the Real ID Act pursuant to state law. Kinder also stated that “getting answers to legitimate questions has been like pulling teeth all along.” In the wake of the scandal, former DOR Director Brian Long resigned April 15 after about four months in his post. Deputy Director John Mollenkamp is serving as acting director. Although no other state officials or staff members have been disciplined, Kinder said he is certain more individuals will be as the state’s investigation into the matter proceeds. Additionally, the General Assembly passed a proposed budget for the next fiscal year which cut DOR funding by one-third. “It will be interesting to see what comes of this,” remarked Rep. Bart Korman, R-42. “Hopefully, DOR will change its approach on some things when we (Missouri’s General Assembly) come back in January. “We’ve moved legislation forward with different restrictions,” Korman added. “There will be something on the governor’s desk restricting information sharing and the scanning of documents.” According to the Associated Press, the Missouri House Tuesday approved legislation barring the DOR from scanning personal documents of applicants for driver’s licenses and entering the information into a statewide database. Revenue department officials began scanning documents — such as birth certificates and concealed weapons permits — in December. Officials claimed it provides more security to licensing. Republican lawmakers objected to the practice, calling it a privacy invasion, the AP reported. The proposed legislation, which now returns to the Missouri Senate, also would require the DOR to securely destroy all documents collected since September 2012, according to the AP. Korman also said he saw no significant problems with how driver’s licenses were issued before revenue department officials began the document scanning which ultimately resulted in the scandal. “Maybe there were some cases of false IDs being made, but I think there’s a bigger chance of that happening with the new system,” Korman said. “I don’t see how it will fix the problem.” An investigator with the Social Security Administration (SSA) who was looking into mental health benefits being received by people who also had endorsements to carry concealed firearms requested the information. Requests for the information were made in 2011 and again in January of this year. However, government officials later said that the SSA investigator was unable to open the files containing the information. State Rejects Real ID Both chambers of the Missouri General Assembly passed House Bill 361 in 2009, which was signed into law by Nixon in July of that year. The law included the following provisions: “Any data derived from a person’s application ... may be shared with a law enforcement agency, judge, prosecuting attorney or officer of the court or with another state for the limited purposes ... for conducting driver history checks in compliance with the Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act. The state of Missouri shall protect the privacy of its citizens when handling any written, digital or electronic data and shall not participate in any standardized identification system using driver’s and nondriver’s license records. “The department of revenue shall not amend procedures for applying for a driver’s license or identification card in order to comply with the goals or standards of the federal Real ID Act of 2005, any rules or regulations promulgated under the authority granted in such act, or any requirements adopted by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators for furtherance of the act. “No citizen of this state shall have his or her privacy compromised by the state or agents of the state. The state shall within reason protect the sovereignty of the citizens the state is entrusted to protect.” Kinder asserted that since the legislation became law, Nixon’s administration “proceeded to ignore it,” and called the actions of various departments “deliberate.” Department of Revenue officials refute the assertion that the state is complying with the federal Real ID law. They acknowledge Missouri law specifically forbids the state from complying with it, and insist the department abides by that state law. An official with the department said the letter from Janet Napolitano Kinder is referring to was a form letter sent to other states that have passed similar laws to Missouri’s that don’t allow state compliance with Real ID. He said that the letter, which is available at warrencountyrecord.com, underscores that while Missouri does not comply with Real ID, Missouri is, and has long been, strongly committed to issuing state-issued photo IDs. Last week, House Speaker Tim Jones, R-110, created the Bipartisan Investigative Committee on Privacy Protection which currently includes 10 members: Russ Oliver, Stoddard County prosecuting attorney; Stuart Miller, Audrain County sheriff; Omar Davis, former general counsel and director of the Missouri Department of Revenue; Oliver “Glenn” Boyer, Jefferson County sheriff; Gary Fuhr, former state representative and retired agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Mike Fusselman, Randolph County prosecuting attorney; Greg White, Cole County sheriff; John Jordan, Cape Girardeau County sheriff; Rep. Stanley Cox, R-52; and Rep. Wanda Brown, R-57. Peter KinderGov. Jay Nixon