The most recent deadline passed on October 27. By then, agencies were supposed to have finished issuing new to all their employees and contractors under a 2004 presidential directive, Homeland Security Presidential Directive-12 (HSPD-12).

Of the more than 5.5 million federal employees and contractors that were supposed to have been issued PIV cards by that date, less than 1.6 million -- or 29% -- actually did get them, according to numbers by the (OMB), which is overseeing the effort.

HSPD-12 is an unfunded mandate that calls for a government-wide standard for identifying federal employees and contractors. It mandates comprehensive background checks of all government employees and requires the use of a common identification credential (PIV smart cards) for access to government computer systems and facilities.

The cards are based on a and are required to be interoperable across government, meaning a PIV card issued by one agency can be read and verified by another agency's authentication systems.

Under the multi-phased roll-out, federal agencies were required to have implemented a background check process and by end of October 2006, finished issuing the cards in October 2007 to all employees with less than 15 years service, and have completed the roll out this year. However, as with this time, federal agencies have missed previous deadlines by wide margins.