A pair of bills working their way through the Indiana Senate could spell trouble for some voters, Tippecanoe County Clerk Christa Coffey contends. Senate Bill 535, authored by Sen. Michael Young, R-Indianapolis, and Senate Bill 466, authored by Sen. Pete Miller, R-Avon, are two of the more problematic bills at this time, Coffey said. SB 535 would require absentee voters to include their voter ID number on their ballots. Coffey testified against the bill and said no one spoke on its behalf. She said since most people do not know their voter ID number, the state would have to mail that number privately to every voter, which could cost about $3 million, she estimated. The ID numbers are not available online and were recently removed from voter registration postcards due to privacy issues. “Our biggest concern is it will discourage people from voting if that’s the only way they can cast a ballot,” she said.
Currently that bill is in appropriations. Young was unable to comment on the bill Monday afternoon.
Senate Bill 466 originally met some controversy for wording that looked as if it was going to prevent college students from voting by stating people in a precinct for a “temporary purpose” couldn’t gain residency and vote.
But Coffey and Miller said that was not the intention of that clause; it was simply an adjustment of wording to fit with other aspects of Indiana Code. Miller said students who don’t intend to return home after college should vote in their new district.
Full Article: Two Senate bills would affect voters.