“Are your papers in order?”

This common phrase in old movies, barked in a German accent, had a clear meaning: only in places like Nazi Germany could an armed person demand proof of citizenship and arrest anyone without the right documents. Equally clear was the unspoken message that this was distinctly unAmerican and wouldn’t be tolerated in a free country.

Well, what about now? Are YOUR papers in order? Yes, right now: with what you have in your wallet, purse, pocket, or even in a safe deposit box, could you prove that you’re an American citizen and entitled to vote?

This isn’t a theoretical question. Republican members of Congress are pushing a bill called the SAVE Act. If it were to become law, millions of us would be robbed of the right to vote because the papers we always relied on simply aren’t “in order” anymore.

Let’s look at the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act (H.R.22/S.128). 

It says that in order to register and to vote you have to provide a U.S. passport, birth certificate, or citizenship certificate. This means

Your drivers license won’t work! Licenses that meet Real ID requirements don’t indicate citizenship. Only a document called an “Enhanced Drivers License” indicates citizenship, and these are available in just five states.

Your military ID won’t work either, unless it is accompanied by your military service record and IF that record shows you were born in the U.S.A.

Your Tribal ID might work IF it says you were born in the U.S.A. But most Tribal IDs don’t list a place of birth.

What about a birth certificate? Well, even if you can find or replace yours, it only works if your current name and gender on a photo ID matches the name on your birth certificate. The bottom line is that a lot of women will lose the right to vote.

• About 69 million women in the U.S.A. changed their names when they married.

• About 4 million men did too.

• The most common reason for legal name changes is just plain disliking the name you were given at birth.

• Changes due to divorce and adoption are also widespread.

• There are many people who, due to adoption or unstable family history, aren’t sure what city, county, or state they were born in, so they can’t request a copy of their birth certificate.

Doesn’t everybody have a passport? Um … nope. Almost half of us don’t.

• About 146 million citizens don’t have a passport.

• In seven states, less than one-third of citizens have a valid passport: West Virginia, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Oklahoma.

• Only in four states do more than two-thirds of the citizens have a valid passport: New York, Massachusetts, California, and New Jersey.

This doesn’t sound so good. But wait, there’s more!

As over 12 percent of Americans move each year, millions of voters would also be required to find these documents any time they change their address.

The SAVE Act would do away with voter registration by mail because all applicants would have to provide documentary proof of citizenship in person. It would also require states and counties to completely rebuild their online systems.

California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber points out that the Act imposes unrealistic, costly, and unnecessary requirements on state and local elections officials. It threatens hardworking civil servants with fines and jail time for simply doing their jobs if any member of the public has a complaint.

Mendocino County Registrar of Voters Katrina Bartolomei reports that while totally revamping and maintaining our system under the Act would be mandated by the Federal government, it’s an “unfunded mandate.” Put plainly, not a penny of our Federal tax dollars will come back to us to help pay for it.

The SAVE Act demands that states do ongoing voter purges based on data known to be faulty. Federal courts have acknowledged that databases identified in the Act, like state DMV databases and the federal Systemic Alien Verification for Entitlements, are highly inaccurate. An audit by the North Carolina State Board of Elections found that over 97% of people identified as non-citizens by their DMV actually were citizens. 

The Systemic Alien Verification for Entitlements database incorrectly identified 75% of naturalized citizens as being non-citizens. Relying on these error-ridden programs would automatically remove thousands of eligible voters from the rolls.

As if this isn’t bad enough… there are California state legislators eager to see a similar bill be enacted here.

What can I do?

• Contact your elected representatives to let them know you expect them to oppose the SAVE Act.

• Share this information with friends and family in other states so they can contact their representatives.

• Protect your own right to vote by making sure your IDs match up and by obtaining any needed documents.

Janet Rosen lives in Ukiah, California.