NC: Voter ID Legislation Introduced in House
Via Tom
Bill would take effect in 2016 and increase
requirements for absentee voters
House Republicans have rolled
out their voter identification bill.
While it has some resemblance to the one vetoed in the
previous legislative session by former Democratic Gov. Bev
Perdue, it also has a significant number of differences.
Still in the bill are strict photo ID requirements for most
voters. And most of the acceptable IDs voters can present
remain the same — a driver’s license, DMV-issued ID card,
passport, state employee ID card, or a tribal ID card.
The new bill would expand the allowable photo ID cards to
include cards issued by the UNC and community college systems,
or identification cards issued to firefighters, EMS, hospital
employees, or law enforcement officers. Cards would be valid
up to 10 years after they expire, and voters 70 and older
could use the photo ID card they had on their 70th birthday,
provided it was still valid on that date.
The state also would pay for ID cards and supporting documents
(such as a birth certificate) for people demonstrating a
financial hardship. A voter requesting free documents would
have to certify, under penalty of perjury, that the expense
for those documents would create a financial hardship.
“The citizens of North Carolina want some form of voter ID
legislation,” House Speaker Thom Tillis, R-Mecklenburg, said
during a Thursday morning press conference. He said he
believed voter ID would restore a “level of confidence” in the
elections system.
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