The Kansas division of a federal civil rights commission will investigate whether voter identification laws have affected turnout around the state. The Kansas Committee of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission voted Tuesday to hold hearings to determine if turnout in some communities has been suppressed, KCUR-TV reported (http://bit.ly/1SMwZAi ). The committee also agreed to ask Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who strongly advocated for the laws, to testify at its hearings, which are expected to take place early next year. “My office would be happy to appear before the Kansas advisory committee and point out the success of the Kansas photo ID law,” Kobach told The Associated Press late Wednesday afternoon.
Committee chairwoman Elizabeth Kronk said there is concern that the law “disproportionately impacts certain age groups and certain racial categorizations.”
“It is fair to say the committee has acknowledged this is an area of controversy,” said Kronk, who is also a law professor at the University of Kansas.
The state committee can recommend that the full U.S. Civil Rights Commission in Washington take up the case.
Full Article: Voter ID laws focus of Kansas civil rights committee | Belleville News-Democrat.