Information contained on Texas Driver's License?

[puma guy]

Looks like this will have to be put on hold 'til we get our RFID implants and barcode tatoos. Should be right after the Health Care Bill Passes.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Plenty of restaurants will read the magstripe of your license to comply with the crazy Texas laws on Alcohol, so I'm sure you can find something that'll do what you want.

From the AG opinion above:

In addition, state law limits the kind of information that may be included in the magnetic strip on a driver’s license and requires the DPS to “take necessary steps to ensure that the information is used only for law enforcement or governmental purposes.”
...
section 109.61 of the Alcoholic Beverage Code permits use of information on the magnetic strip “for the purpose of complying with this code or a rule of the” Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (the “TABC”).

Since a violation would be a class A misdemeanor, (with all the attendant problems for a CHL holder) I'd strongly advise consulting an attorney before reading another person's DL strip for any reason other than those specifically permitted. So if you see Charles talking to himself, you'll know why.

Thanks, I need to research this! I wonder if a person's voluntarily tendering their TDL for this purpose makes any difference? If not, then we may have to look at using credit cards. Apparently, there is some uniformity in the way the data is presented on a credit card, since I frequently use my AmEx on the Continental Airlines and Southwest Airlines automated ticket machines purely for identification purposes to print a boarding pass.

Chas.

[treadlightly]

As I recall. publicdata.com was located in Dallas, started by a couple of guys who had gotten outsourced out of jobs.

At the time, and I would guess through the present day, the DPS sells subscriptions to their data. That's how publicdata.com gets their information. The State of Texas sells what you're not allowed to collect.

The legislature was in a huff that anyone would make available personal data that the state wanted to sell as a monopoly, so noises were made about making publicdata.com's operations illegal.

So, publicdata.com, before the law passed, posted notice they would not act in bad faith against the wishes of the legislature who wanted it to be illegal in Texas for publicdata.com to exist. They were shutting down. And moving their incorporation and servers to somewhere in the Caribbean where there were no Texas laws to be offended. Problem solved!

I'm pretty sure DPS continues to sell databases. I think it's about $1,500 per quarter for updates. Anyone can get them, it just takes signing a check.

From publicdata.com's "about" page, "PublicData.com purchases all of its data from various government entities (directly and indirectly) and is in no way subsidized by any government."

[JP171]

[mojo84]

Thread resurrected from the dead.

[The_Busy_Mom]

Holy thread revival, Batman!!

[treadlightly]

Weird. I found this topic in the "view active topics" list. It intrigued me because of the way the state both tries to limit the spread of DPS information and they sell it as well.

I didn't notice it was old.

[ELB]

I'm glad you did. I missed it the first time, was interested to know those details.

[VMI77]

Thanks folks. I was concerned that the DL might be like a generic "smart card" you buy that contains only its serial number. The use I have in mind requires that the name and address be available. Is it possible to harvest only that information and nothing else?

Chas.

When I go to ERCOT they scan my DL and use the info to print out a name tag so I imagine there is software out there that will pull an address as well.