With one month to go until new rules for domestic flights are scheduled to take effect, barely 40% of Minnesotans have a Real ID-compliant license.

Why it matters: Residents without an ID that meets the updated airport security standards could be grounded for summer air travel.

Driving the news: Starting one month from today, residents 18 and older will need one of the enhanced licenses or identification cards — or an alternative acceptable form of ID like a passport — to board a commercial flight.

What we're hearing: Minnesota's Driver and Vehicle Services says demand for Real IDs has picked up as the deadline nears, lengthening the turnaround time for new applications to 45 days.

• The agency told Axios it processed 69,000 more applications between January and March of 2025 than it did during the same period last year.

How we got here: Congress passed the Real ID Act in 2005, seeking to beef up airport security post-9/11, but the law's enforcement has been delayed several times.

Zoom in: Compliant IDs that meet the new security requirements are typically marked with a star in the upper right corner.

Yes, but: You don't need a Real ID to drive, vote or open a bank account.

Plus: Children under 18 generally don't need to provide identification when traveling within the country.

Between the lines: Not everyone needs or wants one of these new licenses, given that documents like passports, border crossing cards and tribal and military IDs can also be used to fly.

• "Many people have compliant documents that are not REAL IDs and they never intend to get one," DVS spokesperson Erin Johnson told Axios on why the state never anticipated near-universal compliance.

If you still need one: Fill out the pre-application online and book an appointment or walk in at a DVS location that processes these enhanced IDs.

• Additional documentation is required for the application, so double check the list of acceptable residency paperwork before you arrive.

The bottom line: Travelers without the right ID may be able to go through an identification verification process at the airport, TSA says, but they should anticipate long lines and delays.

• "The message we're really trying to get out is for people to plan ahead if they know they're traveling this summer or beyond, because increased demand is creating an increase in processing times," Johnson said.

Where else you need a new ID

Hopkins alum Paige Bueckers, one of the fastest-rising stars in women's basketball, finally has her NCAA title.

Driving the news: The redshirt senior dropped 17 points in UConn's 82-59 drubbing of South Carolina in yesterday's national championship game.

• She received a stirring ovation and an emotional embrace from coach Geno Auriemma after exiting the game in the fourth quarter.

What they're saying: "To be rewarded with something like this, you can't even put it into words," Bueckers told reporters post-game.

The big picture: Bueckers is widely projected as the top pick in next week's WNBA Draft — and until Sunday, a championship was the only thing missing from her college resumé.

• She came up just short in three previous tournament appearances and battled back from a major knee injury that sidelined her for the 2022-23 season.

What we're watching: Where Bueckers ends up. The Dallas Wings own the No. 1 pick, but speculation has persisted that she may try to maneuver out of playing for them.

• When asked to address the rumors earlier this week, Bueckers was noncommittal, telling reporters her future is "in God's hands."

Plus: Albertville native Tessa Johnson co-led the Gamecocks with 10 points in Sunday's contest.

Go deeper: Paige Bueckers eyes glory.

🪧 Around 25,000 people rallied at the Minnesota State Capitol on Saturday in protest of President Trump's policies, the State Patrol estimated. (MPR News)

• Similar "Hands Off!" events nationwide — including at smaller Minnesota events outside St. Paul — collectively drew "millions" of attendees, organizers told Axios.

David Burley, the co-founder of several Twin Cities restaurants including Highland Grill, Groveland Tap and Freehouse, died in a motorcycle crash on Sunday in western Wisconsin. (KARE 11)

Renowned Minnesota photographer Jim Brandenburg — best known for his breathtaking wildlife shots in National Geographic and elsewhere — died Friday at the age of 79. (Star Tribune)

⛹️‍♀️ Lynx greats Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles will be inaugurated into the Basketball Hall of Fame, the institution announced Saturday. (ESPN)

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Rainstorms in the Twin Cities last year were more intense, on average, than they've been in more than two decades, according to a new report from Climate Central.

The big picture: Rainstorms nationwide are packing more punch amid human-driven climate change.

• Warmer air holds more moisture and thus can drive more intense precipitation.

Zoom in: Between 1970 and 2024, hourly rainfall intensity increased nearly 24% in the metro, Climate Central found.

• The data show rainstorm intensity was at its peak in the Twin Cities between 1997 and 2002 — but the overall trend over the last four decades is still markedly upward.

Zoom out: Across the other 143 cities researchers examined, average rainfall intensity rose 13.5% over the same period.

Threat level: Flooding costs the U.S. economy an estimated $500 billion annually, Axios' Andrew Freedman reports.

Shore up your home

Chanhassen Dinner Theatres is holding a memorial today for longtime artistic director Michael Brindisi, who died unexpectedly in February at age 76.

Brindisi helped several future stars — most prominently, Oscar-nominated actress Amy Adams — launch their careers.

• "I truly believe I would not be where I am" without her experience in Chanhassen, Adams told Racket in a recent interview.

Plus: Broadway performers Laura Osnes and Caroline Innerbichler also got their starts under Brindisi's direction.

What to expect: The theater plans to offer a live stream of the 2pm event.

Go deeper via Racket