Wichita rolled out a municipal ID. Here's how it's gone so far

WICHITA, Kan. (The Wichita Eagle) – When Wichita rolled out its new ID program on June 30, Donna Castillo-Garcia and other advocates for the unhoused were some of the first in line, helping their clients obtain municipal ID cards.

Thursday, Castillo-Garcia was back at city hall helping another man get his ID so he could gain access to a food bank.

It’s slowly becoming a routine for the Grassroots Bridge Builders executive director as the city rolls out a new I-9 compliant ID card that community leaders like Castillo-Garcia hope will ease limitations for Wichitans who lack the standard documentation for a state-issued ID, especially those experiencing homelessness.

“It’s such a low barrier foot-in-the-door,” Castillo-Garcia said. “And if we can be successful with it and able to do things, then, you know, maybe later on we can do some of those state-level things where, you know, it helps our city out even better.”

The IDs, which are distributed from Wichita’s City Hall, display a person’s name, photo, address, date of birth and ID number, making it I-9 compliant. Documents that are I-9 compliant can be used to verify an individual’s identity for employment, apply for benefits, fill prescriptions or cash checks.