Why Millions of Americans Have No Government ID

Why Millions of Americans Have No Government ID

 I’ll give you more than one example:

1. The ability to take time off during DMV opening hours. Not just to stand in line, but to get there and back. Not everyone has a flexible job or a boss who is ok with you taking time off or being late.

2. The money and time needed to track down birth certificates and get certified or notarized copies. Or any proof of identity often required for a photo ID. Recently I tried to get a real ID, and was not allowed because my SS card was laminated. To replace that, I had to get to a different government office and had to use a passport to prove who I was.

3. Access to DMV facilities, which are numerous in the burbs, but not so much in the cities or in places accessible by public transit, which is often time consuming and unreliable.

4. If you have child care issues, adds to these troubles. Because you either have to do all this with a kid in tow or have to pay several extra hours of child care while you make time to get the ID. Bills which add to the expense. Lots of people are living paycheck to paycheck and can’t afford time off or additional child care payments.

5. People who work multiple jobs because their low wage jobs do not pay living wage have more trouble doing the above.

6. People who are disabled, may not have transportation or someone who can help them get to the DMV or issuing facility.

Each one of these examples will take members of disadvantaged communities and take them off the voter roles and that is not OK.

I am fully in favor of photo ID requirements when the state also passes laws to ensure each person gets an ID. For example, a state could set up a photo ID issuing location at the poll location for a month prior to elections, make that ID issue facility open extended hours and on weekends. They could invest in mobile ID issue buses that could purposely visit under serviced communities to ensure people could have access. Loads of good ideas out there.

I see lots of effort to pass things like photo ID requirements, but not nearly the same effort put into how we get those critical IDs to everyone. If they are so important, why don’t we do that? In my opinion, because it isn’t about people having ID and it isn’t about false voters (which there isn’t much proof of), it is about creating impediments to voting.