AUGUSTA — Two applications for people’s veto petitions have been filed to overturn the law passed last month that puts Maine on the path to compliance with the federal REAL ID Act — a law opponents say violates people’s civil liberties.

The law, which passed the Legislature after hours of debate that stretched over days, requires the state’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) to check and see if a driver’s license applicant is in the country legally. It also requires the secretary of state’s office, which oversees the BMV, to develop a cost-effective way, such as facial recognition or fingerprint technology, to ensure an applicant does not have more than one driver’s license or non-driver identification card.

Governor John Baldacci put in the legislation under pressure from the Department of Homeland Security, which threatened that Mainers would no longer be able to use their driver’s licenses to board planes or enter federal buildings if the state didn’t tighten up its licensing process. It finally passed 19-15 in the Senate and 79-58 in the House.

Kathleen McGee, an activist from Bowdoinham, and Donna Bendiksen, a Republican House candidate from Portland, both filed veto applications to overturn the law entirely.

McGee said Tuesday she and Bendiksen plan to work together.

“This is about people’s right to privacy and the ability to live in a democracy without the infringement of the federal government overseeing their every move,” McGee said. “This is a basic democratic issue and it crosses all party lines.”

That brings to four the number of applications filed with the secretary of state to launch a veto drive. The other two are focused on the beer, wine, soda and insurance taxes passed to fund the subsidized Dirigo Health insurance program.

The deadline for filing a veto petition application was Monday at 5 p.m. The secretary of state will now approve language for the petitions. In order to get the vetoes on the November ballot, petitioners must collect 55,087 signatures of registered voters by July 17.