14-, 15-year-olds to get state IDs; RMV offering photo moment.

• Position: LOCAL NEWS

Byline: Jacqueline Reis

WORCESTER - When Demek J. Edmonds got paid for his work at the Boys & Girls Club last summer, he couldn't cash his check without his grandmother. Things should be different this summer, thanks to a new offering from the state Registry of Motor Vehicles.

Demek, 15, and five of his classmates from South High Community School were at the registry in Worcester yesterday to help state Department of Transportation Registrar Rachel Kaprielian announce her agency will offer identification cards to 14- and 15-year-olds. Until yesterday, they were only available to people 16 and older.

"It helps both the employee and the employer," Ms. Kaprielian said.

State Rep. John P. Fresolo, D-Worcester, who introduced the bill, said he did so after constituents said it would make it easier for teens to apply for work permits and jobs. Instead of bringing multiple forms of ID with them each time, they could do it once at the registry and simply carry that ID.

When Mr. Fresolo approached Paul M. Leary, assistant branch manager at the Worcester registry, he learned that while there was demand for such an ID, the...