Last November, nearly two-thirds of Nebraskans told their state lawmakers they wanted voters to be required to show a photo ID before casting a ballot.
During a marathon hearing on Wednesday, the Legislature’s Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee heard testimony for and against provisions for enacting a voter ID law introduced by sponsors of the ballot initiative.
As introduced, the bill (LB535) from Sen. Julie Slama of Dunbar outlines several forms of valid photo identification — driver’s license, state-issued ID card, U.S. passport, military or tribal ID — and sets requirements for the Secretary of State’s office to educate Nebraskans on the new law.
Slama’s proposal also explains how voters without a photo ID can request one “free of charge†by filling out an application and showing either a birth certificate, certificate of citizenship, or other document spelled out in the law.
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But an amended version of the bill introduced shortly before Wednesday’s hearing included several major changes to the proposal and led several testifiers — both for and against — to ask the committee to slow walk the process until they could digest the full piece of legislation.
One of the biggest changes in the amended version of the bill included requiring voters who request an early ballot to sign the envelope in the presence of a notary public before returning it instead of sending in a photocopy of their ID or providing their driver’s license number.
Sen. Tom Brewer of Gordon, the committee’s chairman, told testifiers the bill would “go through a lot of morphing†in the coming weeks as lawmakers hammered out agreements on language to send to the floor for debate.
“It ain’t coming out for a while,†Brewer said.
Sen. Steve Halloran of Hastings added: “When it gets to the floor, it’s going to take a lot longer.â€
Wednesday’s hearing largely replayed many of the same arguments heard ahead of the November 2022 election, in which 65% of voters supported Initiative 432 to amend the state constitution to require voters to show ID before voting. The measure passed in all 93 counties.
Secretary of State Bob Evnen, a longtime supporter of the idea, said he favored LB535 as a bill that was “passable, workable, and lawful under the U.S. Constitution,†adding his office was still studying the amendment brought by Slama.
Evnen said only an estimated 2% of registered voters in the state are currently without an acceptable form of photo ID, based on data derived from the U.S. Census and the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles — an assertion opponents to the bill disputed.
“It’s very important we address the 2% who do not (have IDs),†Evnen told the committee, “but in my view that’s a manageable number of people."
Several county election officials said they supported LB535, but indicated they wanted more flexibility in the language of the law to ensure no eligible voter was unable to cast a ballot.
Tracy Overstreet, the Hall County election commissioner, called the original version of the bill “a strong start,†but said two voters in the Grand Island area raised concerns with how they would be able to continue voting under the proposal.
The first was a woman in her 20s who was home or hospital bound without any ability to get a driver’s license or state ID: “Her father called with concerns about how she will be able to continue with her one main civic engagement,†Overstreet said.
The second was a voter in their 80s who was legally blind and without a driver’s license, she added.
And Sherry Schweitzer, the Seward County clerk, said the law should allow local election officials to confirm voters are who they say they are, not put up barriers to voting. Many voters are choosing to vote early and by mail, Schweitzer said, because they enjoy the convenience.
“Please remember this bill is about voter ID and making sure every voter who votes has proper identification,†Schweitzer said. “It’s not about making it harder for people to vote.â€
Some who testified said they supported voter ID laws but did not think LB535 went far enough. The bill did not include penalties for any election poll workers who did not check an ID, Lorenzo Ortega of Bellevue said, nor did it require certain security measures for the ID cards.
Opponents attacked the measure as one of the more restrictive voter ID proposals in the country — 35 states currently have some requirement voters prove who they are before voting — and asked the committee to consider a range of alternatives.
Jeff Schlicting said Article 1, Section 22 of the Nebraska State Constitution says “there should be no hindrance or impediment†to voting and suggested the committee allow expired IDs to be used, require expanded hours and locations to obtain an ID, and delay implementation of the law until 2026.
Viola Burns, meanwhile, told the committee that first-time voters were already required to show a photo ID and proof of address when registering to vote, noting that “IDs are already part of our process.â€
Advocacy groups, including AARP of Nebraska, Arc of Nebraska, ACLU of Nebraska, and others also said the valid IDs proposed under LB535 would make voting more difficult for several groups, including racial minorities, low-income, older or disabled Nebraskans, as well as those in rural areas.
“Many Nebraskans do not have a form of government ID that would be required in this bill to vote,†said Jane Seu of ACLU of Nebraska. “Even if that number is as low as 2%, that translates to thousands of voters.â€
And Corie Sass, a social services coordinator through Vetter Health Services, said obtaining an ID can take months or the better part of a year in some cases, while requiring mail-in votes to be notarized before they can be returned would create a barrier for some.
“My residents can’t even get notaries for power of attorney documents that come up every once in a while,†Sass told the committee.
The committee did not take action on the bill on Wednesday.