Human tagging not compulsory

California has enacted a law banning mandatory RFID implants for people, according to Information Week.

The Bill, signed by governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, prohibits employers and others from requiring people to get RFID tags. It takes effect in January. Wisconsin and North Dakota also have banned forced RFID implantation in humans.

"RFID technology is not in and of itself the issue," said California senator Joe Simitian, who introduced the Bill. "RFID is a minor miracle, with all sorts of good uses. But we cannot and should not condone forced `tagging` of humans. It`s the ultimate invasion of privacy."

The International Air Transport Association, which represents 94% of scheduled international travel on 240 airlines, has agreed to a global standard for mobile bar codes that can effectively replace physical boarding passes, according to Mobile Mag.

Instead of a slip of paper, a bar code image is sent to your mobile phone and it can be scanned to grant you entry onto the plane.

Full 100% implementation of this new standard is expected by the end of 2010, resulting in industry savings of more than $500 million a year.

The IRS has announced a one-year delay in the effective date of Revenue Ruling 2006-57, says CCH.

The ruling relates to the use of smartcards, debit and credit cards to provide qualified transportation fringe benefits.

The IRS concluded that some transportation systems need additional time to modify their technology for compatibility with the ruling`s substantiation requirements. They are, therefore, postponing the effective date of the ruling from 1 January 2008 to 1 January 2009.