William Petroski

bpetrosk@dmreg.com

A contentious voter identification plan that is supported by Republicans and opposed by Democrats was introduced Wednesday in the Iowa House.

House Study Bill 93, labeled the "Election Integrity Act," has been proposed by Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican.

Pate said his plan will modernize Iowa’s elections technology by establishing electronic poll books in every Iowa precinct. In addition, the bill calls for establishing a voter ID system with signature verification, absentee ballot verification and post-election audits.

Every registered voter who does not already own a driver’s license, non-driver’s ID, military ID, veterans ID, or passport, will receive a Voter ID card in the mail, automatically, Pate said. This will apply to newly registered voters as well.

“No voter will be excluded and no eligible voter will be turned away at the polls," Pate said. He also said the bill does not affect voter registration.

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The secretary of state said the overall purpose of the proposal is to continue to ensure the fairness of Iowa's election system while increasing measures to enhance integrity and boosting Iowans’ confidence in the process.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa has vowed to fight Pate's bill, calling it a solution in search of a problem.

Rita Bettis, ACLU-Iowa's legal director, said the proposal would make voting more difficult and more confusing for voters. It would also be more expensive for taxpayers with no justification because Iowa has some of the best elections in the country with some of the highest rates of voter participation and zero indication of any voter impersonation fraud, she said.

"Under Secretary Pate's proposal, voters would be confused, lines would be longer, and some voters simply would not have their ballots counted because they lack a narrow class of three acceptable photo IDs," Bettis said.

Democratic legislators have spoken against Pate's proposal, suggesting it will disenfranchise older Iowans, younger Iowans and people of color. Democrats also complain Pate is turning election policy into a partisan issue. The Iowa State Association of County Auditors has voted to register against Pate's bill, expressing concerns how technology would be implemented.