Dear Representative:
On behalf of the AFL-CIO, a federation of 64 affiliate unions representing 15 million working people across our economy, I urge you to oppose S.1383 the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act. This bill undermines working people’s ability to have their voices heard at the ballot box. By requiring extreme documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote and update an existing registration, this bill will result in the disenfranchisement of U.S. citizens, especially working class and lower income Americans. Federal laws already exist prohibiting non-citizen voting, and there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud to justify the extreme measures imposed on citizens by this bill.
At a time when workers are fighting to get ahead, for fair pay, safe jobs, and dignity at work, the right of every citizen to participate in our democracy is vital. Instead, this bill makes it harder for working people to have a say in our government by requiring Americans to obtain and produce documents like passports and certified birth certificates in order to prove their citizenship whenever they register to vote or just to update their registration. Additionally, they will have to perform this exercise in person after obtaining all the necessary documents and paying the various fees for those documents. Not everyone is in possession of a passport. Only one in four Americans with a high school degree or less has a valid passport, and only one in five Americans with income below $50,000 has a valid passport. Additionally, people of color, rural residents, and seniors are less likely to have a passport than other populations. The bill plainly has a negative disparate impact on working class and lower income U.S. citizens, throwing up new hurdles that will frustrate and prevent their access to the ballot box. It also requires extra steps for married women who have changed their names, as their photo IDs will no longer match their birth certificates.
By requiring individuals to present documentary proof of citizenship in person to an election official, this bill would undermine measures like mail and online voter registration intended to benefit working people and their schedules. Workers may not be able to easily request time off work for this process, and others may lack transportation to get to an election office.
Instead of disenfranchising U.S. citizens, Congress should focus on ways to expand participation and ensure states have the resources they need to run elections. States will now be required to absorb costs for provisions in the bill, such as additional personnel because all voter registrations currently collected online, whether through a motor vehicle department, state elections offices, or by mail, would now have to be done in person. Moreover, election officials risk civil and criminal penalties under this bill if they accept or process voter registration applications without the required proof of citizenship — even if it is just an administrative mix-up.
For these reasons, I urge you to vote NO on the SAVE America Act and focus on policies that expand Americans’ access to the ballot box, including safeguarding the right to vote for all of us.
Sincerely,
Jody Calemine
Director, Government Affairs