Timothy W. Burga —_Pierrette M. Talley PRESIDENT To Representative Robert Mecklenborg and members of the House Committee on State Government and Elections, my name is Pierrette Talley and lam an officer of the Ohio AFL-CIO. Our state federation represents over 650,000 workers from 45 different international unions and our community affiliate Working America has one million members in Ohio. In addition to my role with the Ohio AFL-CIO, lam a community advocate with several organizations and have been working with community organizations serving as a convener of Voter Protection activities in Ohio since 2000. write in opposition to HB159, the Ohio Fair and Secure Elections Act that would require voters to present limited forms of non-expired government-issued photo ID before casting a ballot. If passed, Ohio's voter identification requirements would be among the strictest in the nation. We've learned as of 2006, nationally as many as 11 percent of US citizens - an estimated 30 million individuals do not have government issued photo identification. We believe that HB159 will have the effect of disenfranchising 2 number of Ohio's 8 million registered voters many of who may lack a government issued photo ID in order to vote. Such analysis was thoroughly completed when the issue of requiring photo identification was debated when HB3 was enacted just five years ago. I'm sure you are aware that it costs about $20 - $25 dollars to get an Ohio's driver's license or state ID. Although HB159 requires the state to provide ID to those who attest that they cannot afford one; we believe it is unconstitutional to require any one, not just the indigent, to expend any money in order to exercise the right to vote. In order to obtain a state ID, the voter must present several underlying documents to verlly identity, residency and citizenship (such as a certified birth certificate), which is sometimes difficult and also very costly to obtain. Racial minorities, the working poor, students, the elderly and people with disabilities are twice as likely to lack a non-expired government photo ID. Unemployment for some voters in these groups remain double that of others. In light of the current economic climate where utility bills, gas and food prices are at an all time high, the passage of HB159 would place an addition burden on those already struggling just to run their households on the bare necessities. Further www.ohaficio.org Ohio AFL-CIO | 395 E Broad Street, Suite 300 | Columbus, OH 43215 | phone 614-224-827! | fax 614-224-2671 ivoters would likely have to take time away from work, often without pay just to get the required photo ID. Ata time when Ohio has an estimated $8 billon budget shortfall, it is irresponsible for the state to appropriate millions of dollars on an ineffective solution to a non- existent problem that stands to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of eligible voters. Further, we do not helieve that either the Secretary of State or the local boards of election have provided any evidence that voter fraud or voter impersonation is prevalent in the current election system that already requires all voters to show ID at the polls. If enacted, HB159 under the guise of Ohio Fair and Secure Elections imposes restrictive documentation requirements. We agree that voters should demonstrate that they are who they say they are before voting, but we already have a system in place that accomplishes this goal. Millions of voters cast ballots in Ohio elections and instances of yoter fraud associated with identification are virtually non-existent, and therefore, we stand opposed to HB159. Respectfully, Qcan Al Pierrette M. Talley Secretary-Treasurer