Florida's new driver's license adds a manatee, an alligator, and the space shuttle Discovery

Florida started issuing a redesigned driver's license and ID card on September 30, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said. Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the new design at a Florida Cabinet meeting the day before. It's available now at service centers statewide, and online orders through MyDMVPortal.flhsmv.gov are expected by early November.

You don't have to get one. Drivers in Miami, Tampa, Orlando, and everywhere else in the state can keep their current license or ID, which stays valid until it expires. Older designs will be phased out over time. You'd typically get the new card when your current one expires or when you need a change like a new name or address, ClickOrlando reported. The back of the card itself repeats the existing rule: a replacement is required within 30 days of a change of address or name.

The front shows Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine, the oldest masonry fortress in the continental United States, in the background. An orange stands in for the "O" in "Florida." A manatee sits in the bottom left corner, and an alligator is worked into the gold REAL ID star in the top right.

The back is a nod to the Space Coast. It shows Space Shuttle Discovery, which flew 39 missions and spent 365 days in space before its final landing in Florida on March 9, 2011. It also carries the motto "Let Us Alone" from Florida's first unofficial state flag, which was presented to Gov. William D. Moseley at his inauguration. The state's own graphic of the new design also points out "In God We Trust," an image of Florida, and Florida oranges on the back.

Some of the changes are about security. The new card includes an image of the state seal as an added security feature. Commercial driver's licenses and commercial learner's permits now carry a "Temporary Non-Domiciled" marking where it applies.

"Florida continues to set the standard for secure credentialing," said Dave Kerner, the department's executive director. "This latest redesign further solidifies Florida's leadership in secure identification technology and REAL ID compliance."

The rest works the way it did. The color of the header still shows what type of license you hold, and drivers under 21 get a red box on the front showing the date they turn 21, according to the department's new license page. The card still carries designations for lifetime sportsman's, boater, freshwater, saltwater, and hunting licenses from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, along with veteran, organ donor, deaf or hard of hearing, and developmentally disabled.

Want a closer look? The department's new license page has the full set of images, including samples of the designs issued since 2005, so you can tell which version you're carrying.

Sources

• Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles: Florida launches newly designed driver licenses and identification cards
• Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles: Florida's new driver license and ID card
• ClickOrlando: New look for Florida driver licenses, ID cards
• WSVN 7News: Florida will start issuing redesigned driver licenses September 30