Update: Safeway's not changing their minds and the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control's directives are out-of-date. See below!

I've recently run into some ambiguity with regard to whether passport cards can be used for the same identification purposes that a conventional passport card can.

While I've verified that the passport card is valid for Form I-9 (the form you have to fill out when you start working at a new place. See the top of list A on the last page), I asked the California Secretary of State for clarification. See the email I received in response below:

(Note: This message has been edited for formatting ONLY)

Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:32:15 -0800
From: "Notaries@sos.ca.gov" <notariesmail@sos.ca.gov>
To: <bj@wjblack.com>
Subject: RE: Federal Definition of Passport

Dear Mr. Black:
 
Thank you for contacting our office with regard to passport card.
 
Based on the following federal definitions, the passport card is
acceptable as identification under Civil Code section 1185.

    Title 22 Code of Federal Regulations:

    Section 51.1(d) Passport means a travel document regardless of
    format issued under the authority of the Secretary of State 
    attesting to the identity and nationality of the bearer.

    Section 51.3 Types of passports.
    (a) Regular passport . A regular passport is issued to a
    national of the United States.  

    (b) Official passport . An official passport is issued to an
    official or employee of the U.S. Government traveling abroad to
    carry out official duties. When authorized by the Department, 
    spouses and family members of such persons may be issued 
    official passports. When authorized by the Department, an 
    official passport may be issued to a U.S. government contractor 
    traveling abroad to carry out official duties on behalf of the 
    U.S. government.

    (c) Diplomatic passport . A diplomatic passport is issued to a
    Foreign Service officer or to a person having diplomatic status 
    or comparable status because he or she is traveling abroad to 
    carry out diplomatic duties on behalf of the U.S. Government. 
    When authorized by the Department, spouses and family members 
    of such persons may be issued diplomatic passports. When 
    authorized by the Department, a diplomatic passport may be 
    issued to a U.S. Government contractor if the contractor meets 
    the eligibility requirements for a diplomatic passport and the 
    diplomatic passport is necessary to complete his or her mission.

    (d) Passport card. A passport card is issued to a national of 
    the United States on the same basis as a regular passport. It is 
    valid only for departure from and entry to the United States 
    through land and sea ports of entry between the United States 
    and Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean and Bermuda. It is not a 
    globally interoperable international travel document. 

Sincerely,
 
Notary Public Section

The short version is that the California Secretary of State's office verifies that the passport card carries the same weight for notary purposes as a conventional passport.

I've since written a letter to Safeway corporate headquarters detailing a bunch of research I've done regarding various rules regarding Passport Cards, their efficacy and legitimacy, and agencies that explicitly list the Passport Card as valid ID. Hopefully those who may be confused can find this page on the almighty Google and it will be helpful to them.

Update:

Safeway sent the following response:

Dear Mr. Black:

Thank you for your recent correspondence regarding your dissatisfaction
with the passport card [sic] not being accepted as a legal form of
identification when purchasing alcohol at your local Safeway store.

Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience you experienced on your
recent shopping trip.  Our employees are required to verify proper
identification before selling any liquor to customers that appear to be
under 30 years of age.  It is essential that we enforce this policy to
avoid selling liquor to minors.  By California state [sic] law, acceptable
forms of identification must have name, date of birth, physical
description (height and weight), and a photo.  The ID must be issued by a
government agency and not be expired.  Our employees are very cautious
with the sale of alcohol because they can be held legally liable if
alcohol is sold to minors and if they have not verified valid
identification.  Passports and any other ID's [sic] which do not fit all
of these criteria are not legally acceptable.  We will direct your
comments to the appropriate department for review.

...[contact and other miscellany]...

The statement that there may be legal liability is inconguous with California Business And Professions Code Section 25660, which reads:

Bona fide evidence of majority and identity of the person is a document
issued by a federal, state, county, or municipal government, or
subdivision or agency thereof, including, but not limited to, a motor
vehicle operator's license, an identification card issued to a member of
the Armed Forces that contains the name, date of birth, description, and
picture of the person, or a valid passport issued by the United States or
by a foreign government.

The last part about passports was apparently added by Assembly Bill 1191 last year, so this is a relatively new change to the law. I can certainly understand Safeway lagging the times a few months...

...I can't, however, condone the fact that the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control is also behind the times. From their FAQ:

Q. 74. What is documentary evidence of age and identity?

A. To be suitable as evidence for a defense, the identification card
must be issued by a governmental agency and have a current description
and a picture of the person presenting it which reasonably describes
the person as to date of birth weight, height, sex and color of eyes
and hair. No defense will exist if the card has obviously been altered
or has expired. A registration certificate issued under the Federal
Selective Service Act is no longer considered documentary evidence of
age, identity and date of birth. (Section 25660)

...which isn't exactly what Section 25660 says anymore.

I've responded to Safeway, noting that their understanding of the law is out of date, along with the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.

Disclaimer: I am a software engineer by trade, not a lawyer. This post should not be construed as legal advice.