IDNYC celebrates five years and 400K Queens enrollees
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A New York City resident holds up her IDNYC card. Photo via IDNYC.
By Rachel Vick
For five years, the city’s IDNYC program has allowed New Yorkers of all backgrounds to obtain valid identification while opening the doors to dozens of cultural institutions through admission partnerships. On Wednesday, the city will mark the fifth anniversary of the card by offering a slate of new benefits to cardholders.
IDNYC was introduced in 2014 to enable New Yorkers, including undocumented immigrants, to obtain identification that they could use to access city services and gain entrance to city buildings, including schools. The card can also be used to open a bank account or to check out library books.
To entice residents who have other forms of ID, like drivers licenses, the city worked with cultural institutions to provide free or discounted admission.
On Wednesday, the city is set to announce a new list of cardholder perks. The Mayor’s Office will make the announcement at an event in Flushing.
More than 400,000 Queens residents have signed up to participate in the program since its introduction. Queens accounts for about 30 percent of total enrollment.
Participating institutions in Queens have included Flushing Town Hall, Kings Manor, MoMA PS1, Queens Museum, Queens Zoo and the SculptureCenter
“Immigrant communities in South East Queens and in the greater Queens community have found (some) solace with IDNYC accessible identification, said Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman in a statement. “As [an immigrant], I know the personal effects of what not being able to identify and live under the radar look like.”
The mayor’s office said cardholders have saved $55 million in various fees since the card’s inception.
In recent years, the program expanded to include middle school-aged residents, who can receive a vertical card and are able to apply at pop-up registration events in school.
Applicants are able to decide whether or not to designate gender, but as of 2019, the ‘X’ option was included for nonbinary residents.
“Unlike all the other forms of ID that I have, IDNYC actually shows my correct gender. And more importantly, I never had or will need to show IDNYC letters from the medical establishment ‘proving’ my gender in order to get an accurate ID card,” said Sam Stanton, the first New Yorker to receive IDNYC with Gender X marker. “Just like any cisgender person, I can self-select my gender without jumping through hoops. Or I could select no gender at all.”
On-site enrollment is available at the DOHMH Corona IDNYC Center, the Flushing and Jamaica branches of the Queens Library and LaGuardia Community College.
