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Washington, D.C.—Citing potential privacy and logistical concerns, the leader of the nation’s largest independent union of federal employees urged the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to publish the proposed standards for a government-wide identification card for federal employees in the Federal Register to allow for “wider exposure and fuller comments” before finalizing the standards on Feb. 25, 2005.

“NTEU fully supports any policy that would heighten the security of federal employees. However, outside of the technology community, there has been limited awareness of this plan," said National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) President Colleen M. Kelley. "There are a number of unanswered questions and concerns beyond the technical specifications. As with all programs that impact employees, this plan would benefit from broader discussion with federal employees and their representatives.”

In response to an August 27 Homeland Security Presidential Directive, NIST last month issued draft mandatory standards for Personal Identity Verification (PIV) cards, which employ biometric and other access technologies to electronically verify the identities of federal employees and contractors for access to buildings and information systems. The smart cards would use fingerprints and facial recognition technology to identify cardholders.

In comments filed with NIST today, President Kelley said a broader discussion of the standards was necessary “to assure that the resulting requirements meet the President’s goals of enhancing security and efficiency, while reducing the possibility of identity fraud and protecting personal privacy.”

The NTEU leader also questioned a provision of the draft standards that new employees would have to follow “visitors procedures” for building access until background checks—which could take a considerable period of time—are completed, and a proposal to give agencies the option of revealing an employee’s pay grade and rank on the face of the card. President Kelley raised questions about the security of the information stored on the card chip if the card was lost or stolen, as well as the security of information systems where the data would be stored. Finally, President Kelley expressed concern that the card or data collected via the system would be used for purposes other than employee identification, such as to track employee movements in a building.

Comments on the proposed standards are due to NIST on December 23.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing some 150,000 employees in 30 agencies and departments, including more than 98,000 in the IRS.