Voter bill faces changes

By Martha Stoddard
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU


LINCOLN — Nebraska's fiscal woes are derailing a proposal that would require citizens to show photo identification to vote.

State Sen. Charlie Janssen of Fremont has backed off the original language in his Legislative Bill 239 to avoid the bill's potential costs.

In its place, he plans to offer an amendment that would include a non-photo ID in the list of acceptable documents. The amendment still would require voters to show identification before casting ballots.

But voters could present a voter registration acknowledgement notice instead of a driver's license, state ID card, passport or other federal photo ID.

The notices are postcards or letters mailed when people first register to vote or change their registration for any reason.

Janssen said he is pursuing the amendment to counter opposition and eliminate possible costs of his original bill. Even a non-photo ID would improve security for the voting process, he said.

“Right now you don't have to show anything to vote,â€