Category: News || By

County officials will issue photo IDs to any voter who is afraid he or she will be unable to vote under a new state law.

Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald announced today that Kane Regional Centers and Community College of Allegheny County will issue photo identification cards to people who don't have a valid U.S. passport, state driver's license or a photo ID card from an employer or university.

"I firmly believe that anyone who wants to participate in our democracy through elections should have every opportunity to do so," Fitzgerald said. "That is what we are doing today. Through our Kane Regional Centers and CCAC, we are going to provide the ability for people to get the photo identification that they need to cast their ballot this November."

Pennsylvania Act 18, passed by the state General Assembly earlier this year and signed into law by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett, will require all voters to present a valid photo ID card with an expiration date before they can cast a ballot. The law, which is currently being challenged in state court, has been called one of the most restrictive in the nation by civil rights advocates.

In July, the state Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania Department of State admitted that up to 758,000 people who are registered to vote lack driver's licenses that would comply with the new law, meaning they might not be allowed to vote in November.

The law does allow photo ID cards from universities and personal care facilities to be presented at the polls, as long as those cards carry an expiration date.

. . .

Details of the county's ID card program have not yet been finalized, said Fitzgerald, who was joined at today's announcement by Dennis Biondo, director of the John J. Kane Regional Centers, and Alex Johnson, president of CCAC.

"CCAC is working with Allegheny County to provide these non-student IDs to county residents to ensure that they are fully able to exercise their right to vote this November," Johnson said. "It is our hope that these measures will help to preserve access to this cornerstone of democracy."

County officials will require anyone requesting such an ID card to be a registered voter with a valid address. They will be required to present proof of their identity, which may include any non-photo identification card issued by the state or federal government, a firearm permit, a current utility bill, a current bank statement, or a paycheck or government-issued check.

All of those forms of identification were considered valid for voting purposes prior to the state's passage of Act 18, county officials said.

. . .

The prior system forced voters to identify themselves the very first time they voted, Fitzgerald said, adding that "there is no evidence" that people were voting fraudulently under false names.

"The voter ID law puts additional hoops in place to make it difficult to vote," Fitzgerald said. ""The restrictions are overly burdensome, particularly for seniors and people that don't have the means to get the necessary documentation. While we wait for the court's decision, we are following the statute and are going to provide the ability for people to get photo IDs to vote."

From the Mon-Yough area, the closest state photo ID centers for non-drivers are in Penn Hills, downtown Pittsburgh and Belle Vernon, according to the state's website.

However, there is a Kane center located in Downtown McKeesport and a CCAC campus in West Mifflin. Both are served by public transportation.

. . .

Act 18 is one of a spate of voter ID laws passed by Republican state legislatures nationwide following the 2010 election. Pennsylvania officials claim that Act 18 is designed to prevent possible voting fraud.

But critics argue that the law targets people who use public transportation and don't have driver's licenses --- particularly the poor, elderly and people who rely on public transit. They say that the law is designed to suppress voter turnout in Pennsylvania cities such as Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Erie, Johnstown and Scranton, which vote disproportionately Democratic.

In June, state House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, a Republican from Bradford Woods, told an Republican State Committee meeting that the voter ID law would allow Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney "to win the state of Pennsylvania."

. . .

On Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, citing problems in the state's implementation of the voter ID law, ordered the state's Commonwealth Court to re-consider whether to grant an injunction blocking it from taking effect.

"I am hopeful that Commonwealth Court, given a second opportunity, will issue an injunction to allow registered voters to exercise their right this November without burdens," Fitzgerald said.

You are previewing your comment. Be sure to click on 'Post Comment' to store it.