The Independent View: Rhode Island Free Voter ID is not as Free as You Think

The US Constitution bans charging people to vote.

There are two kinds of non-driver ID cards issued by Rhode Island. One is costly, $26.50, with a $1.50 charge if you use a debit card, and bureaucratic to obtain, the other is free but requires its own kind of effort.

The Rhode Island government says they’re not really charging people for voting! They didn’t want Rhode Island Voter ID law struck down like in Texas, so they slipped something into the Rhode Island law that said people could get a voter ID card absolutely free, without any birth certificates or other expensive documents. The thing is, they never made an extensive effort to notify the general public about this option.

The free voter ID card can’t be obtained at the DMV, it is only issued by the Secretary of State’s office, in Providence.

Instead, the government just lets most people think that the way to get a voter ID card as a non-driver is to go to the DMV, and when you ask the DMV for a card they tell you you need to pay them for it plus provide lots of bureaucratic documentation. So, someone who wants to vote here ends up paying the same kind of bureaucracy-laden fees that were ruled unconstitutional in Texas, except that Rhode Island pretends they’re not really charging people for voting because they have this free option that few people have heard of.

Residents have been pointing out these problems in past hearings at the State House, but the politicians don’t want to admit how Voter ID is a real obstacle to voting. It’s kind of revealing how they’ve let most of the public remain unaware of the free ID card they claim to provide. There’s the rhetoric about making participation as easy as possible, and then there’s the reality which shows they’re actually quite comfortable leaving people unaware and struggling with unnecessary bureaucracy.

Former Secretary of State Mollis did some outreach for the free Voter ID card, and from time to time they will take their voter-ID-card-making machine to places outside Providence so that people who stop by can get a card. But on the whole, this outreach hasn’t been successful enough.

You can get that free voter ID card by providing one of these proofs of identity:

- Employee ID card
- ID card provided by a commercial establishment
- Credit or debit card
- Military ID card
- Student ID card
- Health club ID card
- Insurance plan ID card
- Public housing ID card

If you don’t have one of those proofs of identity, you must bring one of the following documents. It must include your name and be dated since November 6, 2012, unless the document is intended to be of a permanent nature such as a pardon or discharge:

- Utility bill
- Bank statement
- Government paycheck
- Document issued by a government agency
- Official elections document issued by a government agency, dated for the election in which the registered voter is providing it as proof of identity
- Voter notification issued by a governmental agency
- Public housing ID card issued by a governmental agency
- Lease or rental statement or agreement issued by a governmental agency
- Student ID card issued by a governmental institution/agency or non-governmental institution/agency
- Tuition statement or bill issued by a governmental agency
- Insurance plan card or drug discount card issued by a government agency
- Discharge certificates, pardons, or other official documents issued to the registered voter by a governmental agency in connection with the resolution of a criminal case, indictment, sentence or other matter;
- Public transit authority senior citizen and disabled discount ID card issued by a governmental agency
- ID documents issued by governmental disability agencies
- ID documents issued by homeless shelters and other temporary or transitional facilities
- Drug prescription issued by a government doctor or other governmental health care provider
- Property tax statement issued by a governmental agency
- Vehicle registration issued by a governmental agency; or Vehicle certificate of ownership issued by a governmental agency

Voter ID cards was popular with most of the poll workers because it sped up looking up the name of the voter from a written document instead of a spoken or mumbled name.