NEW YORK, New York (The Adobo Chronicles) – Flying from New York to San Francisco? Louisiana to Los Angeles? Minnesota to Florida? New Hampshire to Colorado? Well, you’d better have a valid U.S. passport.

Sure, these are domestic flights, but thanks to a law signed by President George W. Bush in 2005, following 9/11, issuance of state IDs and driver’s licenses has become more strict and cumbersome.

The REAL ID Act forces all U.S. states and territories to demand more proof of identity when issuing IDs, such as a verified original copy of a person’s birth certificate. Plus, it also increases the technology present in the government-issued cards.

Four states —  New York, Louisiana, Minnesota and New Hampshire — have refused to comply with the new law which means that if those four states don’t upgrade their ID systems, the Transportation Security Administration or TSA will demand that residents use passports rather than driver’s licenses to board domestic flights beginning in 2016.

The TSA will accept U.S. passport cards which cost $55, or passport books costing $135 as valid ID.

On the positive side, this will mean more revenue for the State Department which issues U.S. passports and passport cards.  Foreign embassies and consulates in the U.S. will also see increased revenue for non-U.S. citizens who will need to secure passports from their respective countries of origin.