Requiring certain identification in order to vote at a polling place or obtain an absentee ballot, verification of the addresses of electors, absentee voting procedure in certain residential care apartment complexes and adult family homes, and the fee for an identification card issued by the Department of Transportation

What it would have done

Summary by the Legislative Reference Bureau, the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.

With certain limited exceptions, before being permitted to vote at any polling place, an elector currently must provide his or her name and address. If the elector is not registered, the elector must provide a specified form of proof of residence in order to register. If an elector is not able to present any required proof of residence, as an alternative, current law permits an elector's registration information to be corroborated by another qualified elector who resides in the same municipality. In addition, an elector other than a military elector or an overseas elector, as defined by federal law, who registers by mail and who has not voted in an election in this state must provide one of the forms of identification specified by federal law, or a copy thereof if voting by absentee ballot, in order to be permitted to vote. Corroboration may not be substituted for this identification requirement, but an elector who cannot provide the required identification may cast a provisional ballot. The municipal clerk or board of election commissioners must determine whether electors casting provisional ballots are qualified to vote by 4 p.m. on the day after an election.

With certain limited exceptions, this bill requires each person attempting to register or vote at the polls on election day to present a valid Wisconsin driver's license issued by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to the person, a valid, current identification card issued to the person by a U.S. uniformed service, or a valid Wisconsin identification card issued by DOT to the person. A person whose address is confidential as a result of domestic abuse or in certain cases a person who has been required by a law enforcement officer to surrender his or her license (see below) is exempted from the requirement. Under the bill, any person who applies for an absentee ballot by mail, except a military or overseas elector, as defined by federal law, or a person whose address is confidential as a result of domestic abuse, must provide a copy of the license or identification card, unless: 1) the person has already provided a copy of his or her license or identification card in connection with an absentee ballot cast at a previous election and has not changed his or her name or address since that election; 2) the person has been required by a law enforcement officer to surrender his or her license (see below); 3) the person is indefinitely confined, in which case the person may submit a statement signed by the person who witnesses his or her absentee ballot verifying his or her identity; or 4) the person is an occupant of any nursing home, or of a community-based residential facility, retirement home, adult family home, or residential care apartment complex where a municipality sends special voting deputies, in which case the person may submit a statement signed by the deputies verifying his or her identity. The bill continues current requirements for certain electors to provide proof of residence in order to register or to vote, but discontinues the use of corroborating electors to verify residence. If a person who votes at a polling place fails to provide a license or identification card, the person may vote provisionally. If a person votes by absentee ballot and fails to provide a copy of the license or identification card, unless exempted from the requirement, the ballot is treated as a provisional ballot. A provisional ballot is marked by the poll workers, who immediately contact the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners. The person may then provide the required identification either at the polling place before the closing hour or at the office of the clerk or board. If the person does not provide the required identification to the clerk or board by 4 p.m. on the day following the election, the person's vote is not counted.

Who's behind it

14 senators are its authors⁠. 11 are Republicans and 3 are Democrats.

31 more lawmakers signed on in support⁠.

What it would cost

State agencies filed a cost estimate. Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.

• Fiscal Estimate From DOT
• Fiscal Estimate From GAB