It took over 13 months to award a contract, but finally the State of New Jersey Department of Motor Vehicles awarded the Enhanced Digital Drivers License (EDDL) and Central Issuance contract to L-1 Secure Credentialing. The contract, valued over $6 million, will span 7 years and will put New Jersey at the forefront of digital driver's license systems. The first year of the contract will include the planning and implementation of the new licensing system, while the subsequent six years will consist of card production and equipment/software maintenance.

The state began this process in September 2008 when they released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the EDDL system. Proposals were due December 2008. The previous driver's license contract was held by Digimarc, now a part of L-1 Identity Solutions.

New Jersey is changing its pre-existing workflow process for driver's license issuance to incorporate photo-first capabilities as part of the State's effort to curb identity-related fraud. In addition, the State is implementing a secure card production solution as part of its over-the-counter system that will exceed the recommended standards set by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, making the cards compliant with proposed standards set forth in the REAL ID Act.

More information on what other states are doing in regards to REAL ID and driver's license systems please see INPUT's REAL ID vertical profile.