Legislative Republicans unveiled a budget proposal Tuesday that includes nearly $650,000 to implement a new voter ID initiative but makes $1.4 million in cuts to other departments and programs. Republicans said they were glad to support the Secretary of State’s voter identification plan, but Democrats were immediately critical that it would come at the expense of other programs such as the Iowa Public Information Board and the Child Advocacy Board. “Given the cuts of every other department, this is unconscionable that we would put $700,000 into a problem that doesn’t exist when we have other problems that do exist and we’re cutting those departments,” said Rep. Bruce Hunter, D-Des Moines. The proposal would provide about $47.4 million in funding to administration and regulation services. It’s part of the state’s overall $7.245 billion spending plan, which includes cuts to nearly every area of the state budget.
It sets aside $645,774 to fund a voter identification and election reform initiative proposed by the Secretary of State’s Office. That piece of legislation is still under debate, but it’s expected to gain final approval in the Senate and advance to Gov. Terry Branstad for his signature.
If enacted, that legislation would set new requirements for voters to show identification at the polls in an effort to prevent election fraud. The bill has drawn the ire of Democrats like Hunter who point to statistics that show voter fraud is exceedingly rare in Iowa and across the country.
Full Article: Iowa budget includes funding for voter ID initiative, cuts for other programs.