It appears student testimony against the proposed voter identification bill moving through the state Legislature has not fallen on deaf ears.
The bill’s author, Rep. Jeff Stone, R-Greenfield, capitulated Friday and drafted an amendment allowing for the use of student ID cards as an acceptable form of photo ID when registering to vote.
Some of the opposition to the bill stemmed from the requirement of a driver’s license, state-issued ID or military ID to register at the polls – forms that would likely disenfranchise many out-of-state students across the UW System.
However, there is one caveat to the amendment that gives us pause: Stone said student ID use is contingent on the ID including the student’s current address on the card.
This provision will undoubtedly lead to a huge headache for university staff and students alike, as student addresses typically change each year. Constantly replacing cards will also place a considerable cost on students just for their right to vote: Currently, new Wiscards are $25 a piece.
Given our doubts about the necessity of a voter ID bill in the first place, we urge Stone to reconsider the address requirement on student IDs. Despite its billing as a solution, requiring a new card so often is just another form of Republican legislators disenfranchising college voters who typically lean Democratic.