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Union seeks comments on federal ID cards

WASHINGTON, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- The chief of the largest federal employee union Wednesday called on the U.S. government to publicize its identification card plan to get comment.

Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, urged the National Institute of Standards and Technology to publish the proposed standards for government-wide IDs in the Federal Register to allow for "wider exposure and fuller comments" before finalizing the standards on Feb. 25.

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"NTEU fully supports any policy that would heighten the security of federal employees," Kelley said. "However, outside of the technology community, there has been limited awareness of this plan. 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."

The proposed smart ID cards would use fingerprints and facial recognition technology to identify cardholders.

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