In Pennsylvania, voter identification moves forward.
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Supporters say enactment of these bills will help combat fraud at the polls, welfare offices and job sites, while critics say it will mean individuals have to rely more on ID and carry around documents with them.
The voter ID bill sponsored by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12, Butler, is drawing the most controversy since it narrows the list of acceptable forms of ID at the polls.
Under current state law, voters who appear at a polling place for the first time need to show proof of identification. The approved forms of photo ID include a driver’s license, U.S. passport and state and employee ID cards, while the law also allows voters to submit such nonphoto documents as a firearm permit, current utility bill, bank statement or paycheck and government check.
Requiring photo ID each time at the polls can prevent such fraudulent actions as impersonation, fictitious registration, double-voting and voting by illegal immigrants, said Mr. Metcalfe. Photo IDs are already required to board a commercial plane and to cash a paycheck, he added.
One vocal critic of the bill, Andy Hoover, legislative director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, said it would disenfranchise voters lacking a government-issued photo ID who are disproportionately the elderly, blacks and the working poor.
Mr. Hoover also said little evidence exists that voter fraud is a problem in Pennsylvania