California’s Digital ID project strives to provide every eligible person with easy, secure, privacy-preserving access to all of California’s digital government services.
What is a Digital ID
A digital identity (or ID) verifies your identity online in a way that can be reused across websites. You may be familiar with Digital ID if you’ve ever filed your taxes online with the IRS, applied for federal student aid, or checked your social security balance. These are all federal websites, and California is exploring how it can use this same technology at the state and local level.
What we’ve accomplished
Starting in 2022, CDT began the Digital ID program by engaging with private sector companies active in digital identification, verification, and benefits delivery. The “market sounding” survey linked below explored best practices and confirmed the approach to deliver secure digital ID capability for California residents.
We’ve also created deployable technology tools like the California Identity Gateway to facilitate quick and secure digital identity and eligibility verification, and have integrations with other identity providers such as Login.Gov and the Department of Veteran Affairs to provide us with critical data. We have multiple live implementations of the California Identity Gateway at transit agencies across the state, working with Cal-ITP to verify seniors and veterans for discounts and link them with their preferred contactless payment method.
What’s coming next
The Digital ID team is currently working to test and deploy the policies and technology that make up the California Digital ID Framework, and is exploring additional MVPs and use cases across the state. By the end of 2024, we aim to expand our depth of coverage to Californians by having more implementations in transit, like SacRT and others. We’re also expanding the breadth of coverage to other eligibility criteria like MediCare card holders or CalFresh recipients.