It sounds so simple and reasonable. Persons voting in an election should be citizens. I think we all agree with that rationale.
Iowa, along with the other states, has been given the right in the United States Constitution to have its own voting laws including registration, voter identification, early voting, mail-in voting, and polling hours. You may recall last year’s legislative session decreased the mail -in voting and polling hours.
The written Congressional House legislation that has passed includes requirements that become a very slippery slope.
Let me explain further.
The SAVE ACT( Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act) passed the House in January of 2025 but failed in the Senate.
A new version was introduced in the House in January 2026. The bill passed in the House 218 to 213 on Feb. 11. Three of Iowa’s congressional delegates – Feenstra, Hinson, and Miller- Meeks – were listed as cosponsors of the legislation and all four delegates voted in favor of the legislation.
Specifically, the bill prohibits states from accepting and processing an application to register to vote in a federal election unless the applicant presents documentary proof of U.S. citizenship. The bill specifies what documents are considered acceptable proof of U.S. citizenship. This includes the REAL ID Act of 2005 that indicates U.S. citizenship. The glitch with the REAL ID is in many states it does not include a citizenship requirement.
A passport may be used for documentation declaring citizenship. However, only about half of Americans have obtained a U.S. passport, a process that typically takes four to six weeks and costs around $130.
Another form of approved documentation, such as a birth certificate, would suffice. This is a barrier for the 69 million married women who took their spouse’s last name and whose birth certificates do not match their current legal name.
The Brennan Center for Justice found in a national survey conducted in 2023 that nine percent of American citizens — or 21.3 million people — do not have ready access to proof of citizenship.
Another slippery soap is the bill also establishes increased criminal penalties for election workers who register voters without the required proof of citizenship.
I can imagine going to my polling place in Berkley, poll workers are probably neighbors or acquaintances. They know me and maybe even my parents and know I am a citizen. If they chose to allow me to vote without producing the required documented citizenship they could face criminal penalties.
The requirement for proof of citizenship seems baffling. As the voter registration form, which I must sign before receiving a ballot asks me to swear, under penalty of perjury, that I am a U.S. citizen and eligible to vote. It also asks for either my social security number or my driver’s license.
It is already illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections, and research finds just 0.04% of voter verification cases are identified as noncitizens.
The third slippery slope is making states conduct frequent purges of their voter rolls and to share voter information with the Department of Homeland Security. This could potentially compromise the privacy of millions of Americans.
Voting rolls may contain a lot of information in addition to your name and your age. While the specific information depends on your state, your voting roll might contain your party affiliation, your date of birth, your address, phone number, and email.
A Senate vote is needed to pass the legislation, with the backing of at least seven Democrats to meet the 60-member threshold. This vote is not currently scheduled for debate.
The reality is that the SAVE Act would prevent far more citizens from being able to vote than would serve to block the rare incidents of non-citizens from voting.
This renewed push to pass the SAVE Act comes at a time when the president has said he wants to nationalize elections in 15 states, despite the Constitution granting states control over elections. Today Cabinet member Christy Noem made a statement, “We want the right people to vote.”
I will encourage my granddaughters not to accept their spouses’name if they marry. I will encourage you to contact Senators Grassley and Ernst regarding the SAVE Act.
View From my Window is shared by Mary Weaver of rural Rippey.
