Members of the U.S. military and their loved ones should have an easier time acquiring identification cards, according to a published report.

The American Forces Press Service reports the Defense Manpower Data Center has unveiled Real-time Automated Personnel Identification System, which is a self-service method of permitting members of the service and the reserves who are equipped with a common access card to apply for identification cards.

More colloquially known as RAPIDS, the program also allows for easy updates to online status of dependents.

As many as 3.7 million members of the service are eligible to use the new program, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.

"The idea is to try to make life easier for our military members, their families and for veterans," director Mary Dixon with RAPIDS told reporters during a conference call. She said the center "has been working for some time now to try to improve and transform our whole ID card application process so people can do things online and not spend long hours going to a site and waiting to be seen."

She said some people have greatly suffered while waiting in line to get identification cards.

Prior to the new program, members of the service, retirees and their families had no choice but to go to a Defense Manpower Data Center together to solicit an application form.

They then had to patiently wait during construction of the identification card.

"This is big project," the director said. "It takes away time from your work, and if you are separated - maybe the spouse is out on a ship or on deployment or your child is away at college - it makes it a huge problem."

A military identification card helps people get on base, enter the commissary, access child care and get healthcare, according to military.com.

Texas schools have laid plans to upgrade student identification cards, an administrator with the system told a news source on Wednesday.

Additional features like attendance verification and the capacity to access GoPrint Services are under exploration and forecast to cost $106,000, finance and fiscal services associate vice chancellor Pamela Ansboury with Alamo Colleges told The Ranger.

The system will have to generate identification cards for roughly 65,000 individuals. The newly released identification cards serve as a replacement for Alamo Cash cards and enable students to get to their money by pulling money from an ATM.

The student identification cards presently in use have the encoding of students' Banner numbers, which permits confirmation as to if the student is enrolled in the school. The Banner number also enables a student to borrow books from libraries in the college system.

The use of the ID cards will aid the district with requirements outlined by the U.S. Department of Education, district comptroller Ann DeBarros told the news source. The federal agency decides how to award aid to the district.

"So if we had an attendance method of tracking attendance, we could more clearly track when a student stops attending, withdraws, all their classes, and adjust the financial aid accordingly," the district comptroller told the news source.

The associate vice chancellor said the student identification cards are projected to be used for GoPrint services. But she noted that process has not advanced very rapidly thus far.

She also said that it remains unclear when this step will be implemented.

"It is on the project plan," Ansboury told the news source. "We haven't rolled that out yet because we need to stabilize some things before we add other functionalities."

The five colleges of the Alamo System include San Antonio, St. Philip's, Palo Alto, Northeast Lakeview and Northwest Vista, according to the website. The schools offer associate degrees, certificates and licensures in occupational programs.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is not required to enforce voter identification laws at this November's general election but the state will be permitted to implement the controversial law next year, a judge ruled on Tuesday.

Exactly five weeks prior to Election Day, Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson based his decision on two days of testimony, The Associated Press reports. The ruling also arrived after the State of Pennsylvania attempted to ease the process of acquiring an identification card that enables voters to cast ballots.

Simpson heard about driver's license centers with long queues and misinformed clerks as well as identification requirements that make the process more difficult for some registered voters to acquire a photo identification card issued by the state.

Bloomberg reports the law could cause confusion at the polls on November 6, when the nation decides between re-electing Democratic President Barack Obama for a second term or replacing him with Republican challenger Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts.

Poll workers still may request voters to present identification cards, Bloomberg reports.

But voters who do not have an identification card may still cast ballots, which will be counted in the election.

"While we're happy that voters in Pennsylvania will not be turned away if they do not have an ID, we are concerned that the ruling will allow election workers to ask for ID at the polls and this could cause confusion," states an email to Bloomberg authored by co-director Penda D. Hair with advocacy group The Advancement Project. "This injunction serves as a mere Band-Aid for the law's inherent problems, not an effective remedy."

Advocates of the voter ID law argue it helps stave off threats to the integrity of general elections while opponents believe it has the potential to disenfranchise legitimate voters who do not have the necessary identification card.

Keeping students, faculty and staff members safe is among the top priorities for higher education facilities. For this reason, among others, many colleges around the United States are deploying advanced access control systems that use near-field communications technologies.

The University of San Francisco and Villanova University in Pennsylvania are just two of the many academic organizations embracing NFC-enabled access control systems, according to a report by CR80 News. These schools, like others, have transformed personal smartphones and other gadgets into ID cards by turning the gadgets into identity authentication tools.

"NFC is the wave of the future. Students need their smart card and their smartphone to get through the day. Why not make them the same?" said Jason Rossi, the director of the University of San Francisco's One Card and Campus Security System, according to CR80 News. "Our students are very tech savvy, so we knew this would be right up their alley."

How NFC is changing access control
In the past, access control systems needed complicated ID badges to authenticate a user's identity. While this is still the case, the rapid adoption of mobile devices is allowing organizations to change how these badges are presented, transforming them from traditional smartcards to personal smartphones, tablets and other gadgets.

By leveraging NFC-enabled access control systems, companies can improve physical security while simultaneously boosting service and user satisfaction, CR80 News noted.

"It increases security by acting as a de facto tool for secure access and transactions," Rossi said, according to the news source. "It improves service because students enjoy the convenience of using their phones instead of their cards. And we project it will reduce costs by reducing the number of lost cards, meaning we won't have to carry as extensive an inventory of replacement smart cards."

A separate report by Frost & Sullivan confirmed the growing adoption of NFC-enabled smartphones, noting that there will be more than 83 million devices, or approximately 53 percent of the overall market, using NFC technologies by 2015.

As mobile technologies continue to evolve and become more intuitive, the gadgets will likely embrace NFC technologies more fluently in the coming years, allowing educational facilities and a wide range of other industries to implement advanced access control systems.

All members of a Chicago school's community are mandated to acquire new identification cards, according to a published report.

Students, staff and faculty members at Roosevelt University must go to the Office of the Registrar so they may get the cards that will allow access to two buildings, the Wabash and the Auditorium, The Roosevelt Torch reports.

University registrar Sheila Coffin told the news source that the effort is being spearheaded by the office of Campus Safety and Transportation.

"The need for controlled access to the Wabash Building student residences and controlled access to the new Pharmacy College facilities in Schaumburg led to the adoption of the new smart ID cards," the university registrar told the news source.

Students may hold on to their old identification cards but those are not equipped with technology that permits access to the buildings.

The new cards must be acquired by November 1, but that deadline is hinging on other factors, the registrar said.

"Students, faculty and staff without the new ID cards after Nov. 1 will only be able to access the building by checking in with the security personnel," she told the news source. "The ... deadline is somewhat tentative depending on the installation schedule of the turnstiles in the Michigan Avenue lobby."

Policy at the school requires students to carry an identification card during their entire stay at the school.

The cards should not be defaced, exposed to magnetic fields or used by anyone other than the bearer.

"The ID card is the property of Roosevelt University and must be presented upon the request of an appropriate university official and may be revoked at any time by the university," the registrar told the news source.

Roosevelt University offers 126 degree programs, according to the school's website.

A California county will begin distributing identification cards that allow veterans and military retirees reduced prices on various goods and services, according to a published report.

The Veteran Discount ID cards are available from the Solano County Veterans Services Office and local businesses are expressing gratitude for their military service and drawing their business, according to The Reporter.

But some veterans indicated they encountered challenges acquiring ID cards, particularly after they served short periods of time in the military.

"In the past, the only way veterans could prove their military service was to show their DD Form 214," officer Ted Puntillo with the Solano County Veterans Services told the news source. "That's too precious of a document to carry around in your wallet. The Veteran Discount ID card solves that problem."

The ID cards will be ready for distribution next month. At least 40,000 U.S. veterans reside in the county and the office Puntillo serves is expecting sizable interest.

The military ID cards will be available for pick up from October 9 through October 12.

"This is an innovative way to connect veterans to vet friendly businesses," Puntillo told the news source. "We are also hoping to introduce veterans to the many other benefits they earned by serving their country."

Honorably discharged veterans may acquire the ID card by bringing a copy of their DD Form 214 and cards will be available shortly thereafter.

Members of the community, organizations that serve veterans and local merchants are covering expenses and costs associated with production of the cards.

Solano County is located midway between San Francisco and Sacramento and has been repeatedly recognized as having strong future prospects by the America's Promise Alliance, according to the County website.

Voters in the state of Tennessee must comply with the state's voter identification statute, a Nashville judge ruled earlier this week, The Associated Press reports.

Chancery Court Judge Carol McCoy with Davidson County issued the ruling on Wednesday following roughly three hours of oral arguments. Her finding opposes the opinion of civil rights attorney George Barrett who argued the constitution of Tennessee mandates proof of legal age, residency and registration.

Barrett said the law demanding voters only may cast ballots with photo identification cards issued by the state or federal government.

But the judge said the past few years have seen evolving voting procedures, which enable the state legislature to move forward with laws that help ensure "the purity of the ballot box."

Douglas Johnson, who argued the case alongside Barrett, said lawmakers' motive is to hold down the participation of minorities for the presidential election in November.

But one Republican state senator praised the judge's ruling and said that court action demonstrates the law's validity and constitutionality, The Shreveport Times reports.

On Wednesday "we had affirmation in state court, in addition to federal court affirmation in July, that Tennessee has the right to guard against voter fraud and 'to secure the freedom of elections and the purity of the ballot box,' as our Constitution states," according to a statement issued by Senator Bill Ketron.

Exceptions to the law are available for senior citizens who reside in nursing homes and for people casting absentee ballots.

But voters who are unable to demonstrate an acceptable photo identification on election day in early November may return to the election office in their county within two business days to demonstrate they have an ID.

If they do not take those steps, their vote will not register, the news source reports.

A Pennsylvania college has drawn praise for its practices of enabling voting for its students by creating acceptable identification cards that comply with the state's voter ID law, according to a published report.

While the constitutionality of that voter ID legislation is tied up in the state's court system, Secretary of State Carol Aichele said that Pennsylvania State University produced ID cards that help its students vote, Gant Daily reports.

The law mandates that voters in the state must show a valid photo ID in order to cast ballots, beginning on Election Day this November.

"Penn State quickly took action to add expiration dates to ID cards for incoming students beginning with this past summer term, and making university issued stickers available for returning students, to insure all Penn State students are able to vote," the secretary of state said at a news conference Wednesday in the Hetzel Union Building on Penn State’s University Park Campus, according to the news source.

She underscored the importance of Penn State taking action, and noted that the entire student body of roughly 90,000 students can benefit.

Many of the students do not have any form of ID other than their college identification so what the school did to enable the students' abilities to vote gained favor.

"Penn State is our state's largest university, and this action made sure any of the school's 90,000-plus students who don't have other acceptable ID can vote using their student ID," said the woman who directs the government agency that manages elections in Pennsylvania.

The Associated Press reports that attorneys aiming to stave off enactment of the voter ID law in the state are calling witnesses to the stand on Thursday to testify about the challenges they face acquiring ID badges.

The matter is back in the hands of Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson after a higher bench returned the issue to him.

A college in North Central Pennsylvania is providing students with new photo identification cards to enable them to vote in the November election, according to a published report.

Vice president of student affairs Linda Koch with Loch Haven University said the new IDs will have expiration dates on them, The Express reports.

New students at the school were given the new cards and returning students have the opportunity to request the new student identification cards that have expiration dates so they may vote in elections, Koch told the school's Council of Trustees meeting late last month.

"We will announce the availability of the new ID during voter registration drives on the campus," states an email penned by the vice president to The Express.

But the students  need to prove that they are eligible to vote in order to receive the new ID card.

Koch noted that the dates for the voter registration drive have not yet been set.

"Students requesting a new ID for voting purposes will also need to provide proof of their voter registration," the vice president's email states.

To comply with Pennsylvania's voter ID law, specific identification cards are needed to cast ballots. Proponents say it is a strong way of cutting down on voter fraud.

Students who request new cards will have them returned within minutes of when the picture is taken, Koch said.

As of the article's publication, not one student had requested a new ID card, according to Koch.

She said the school designed the cards with a specific goal in mind.

"The telecommunications office provided the new design of the card and the needed information that was required to have an expiration date imprinted on the card for each student," Koch wrote.

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has begun reviewing the current process of issuing photo identification cards, according to CBS.