The Ohio Senate may vote on photo ID bill, HB 159 tomorrow afternoon.
The bill, as well as omnibus election bill, HB 194, went through a number of changes last week relating to the extent of a photo identification requirement, delaying movement in the state Senate.
The bills were amended to require photo ID from all voters, but if they do not have required ID, they may vote by provisional ballot after providing all nine digits of their Social Security number.
Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted announced his opposition to a photo identification law in a short statement last week, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
“I want to be perfectly clear, when I began working with the General Assembly to improve Ohio’s elections system it was never my intent to reject valid votes.
“I would rather have no bill than one with a rigid photo identification provision that does little to protect against fraud and excludes legally registered voters’ ballots from counting. It is in the hands of the General Assembly.”
Voting rights groups also contend that the photo ID mandate is a costly solution in search of a problem. Ohio already has a secure voter verification law that prevents voter impersonation while still providing every eligible voter the opportunity to cast a ballot. (Currently, are allowed to present a utility bill, paycheck, or bank statement in lieu of photo ID.)
“An estimated 11 percent of voters nationwide lack official photo ID,” the Toledo Blade editorial board writes. “Carrying out the requirement in Ohio would force the state to spend a lot of money to set up a system of free photo identification documents, and could encourage lawsuits, at a time when Republican lawmakers are preaching about the need to reduce the cost of government.”
There are other costs that a photo ID law would impose on both the state and voters. Under the pending legislation, the only alternative for voters without photo ID puts them at risk by requiring them to disclose private information (their full Social Security number) and take the chance that their vote may not be counted. A provisional voter’s information is cross-checked with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, so if they never had an Ohio ID or driver’s license, they will be unverifiable and therefore, uncounted. Documents required to get a state ID from the BMV are expensive: Citizens who were born in Ohio and were issued a birth certificate must pay $21.50 for a reissue. The cost is higher for people born outside of Ohio.
Additionally, the cost of implementation (which includes training of election officials, as well as voter education and outreach) could cost the state millions, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. Photo ID laws in Indiana and Georgia were only approved by the Supreme Court because they both employed extensive, costly education efforts.
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