Need Real ID? Cape Girardeau County's archivists may be helpful

More people are making requests for old divorce records, at least in part because of the upcoming May 2023 deadline to apply for a Real ID card, said Marybeth Niederkorn, director of the Cape Girardeau County Archive Center in Jackson.

"We receive between 10 and 20 requests for a copy of the divorce record each month," said Niederkorn, adding the reasons for the ask vary.

"As I recall, the requirements for Real ID tend to be most frequent reason people mention," she added, noting women "need to document every name change" in order to obtain the card.

The deadline

Real ID goes into effect nationally May 3, 2023, with the implementation delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Real ID Act of 2005 is a federal law focused on fraud protection, anti-terrorism and driver's license and nondriver's license identification card security.

The Real ID Act established minimum standards for state-issued driver's licenses and ID cards and prohibits federal agencies from accepting for official purposes such licenses and cards from states who don't meet the standards.

Missouri achieved full implementation of its Real ID program, according to the Missouri Department of Revenue, in 2019.

• If a person wants to board a federally regulated domestic flight beginning May 3, 2023, a Real ID-compliant driver's license or ID card will be required.
• If a person wants access to federal facilities and to nuclear power plants, a Real ID-compliant driver's license or ID card will be needed by that same date.

More information on Real ID in Missouri may be found at www.dor.mo.gov/driver-license/issuance/real-id.

One million documents, amounting to more than 4,500-cubic-feet of records, are housed at the Cape County Archive Center in Jackson. The center is asking the Missouri Secretary of State's Office for a new grant for shelving to house more safely the historic material.Courtesy Cape Girardeau County Archive Center

Grant request

The Cape Girardeau County Commission agreed Monday to allow the Archive Center to apply for a new $12,000 local records preservation program grant from the Missouri Secretary of State.

Niederkorn said the money, if approved in Jefferson City, will be used for more shelving to help the center house more safely the 1 million documents entrusted to its care.

"Last year, our administrative assistant, Lyle Johnston, and I figured we needed 600 shelves altogether. The annual grant is capped at a certain amount so we couldn't get funding to buy them all in a single award. When the state got us $12,000 in 2021, we were able to buy about 230 shelves — so we're going to continue to ask for grants to increase our shelf capacity," she said.

Niederkorn said some boxes in the Archive Center are stacked two or three high, which complicates retrieval and may lead to boxes degrading and potentially failing — noting the situation is a safety and preservation issue.

Using the center

Niederkorn said county residents looking for archival documents are asked to call ahead so the staff can do a search. She added no appointment is necessary but patrons are requested to wear a face covering when entering the building.