Pennsylvania officials announced on Tuesday that all voters can choose to receive either secure Pennsylvania Department of Transportation photo IDs or Department of State voting-only ID cards while visiting a PennDOT driver's license center.
In order to get the state-issued voter ID card, an individual need only give his or her name, date of birth, Social Security number and address. Proof of residence is not required.
PennDOT will then confirm with the Department of State that the applicant is a registered voter while the applicant is at the driver's license center. The applicant will get a Department of State voter ID card once the information is confirmed.
If an applicant's voter registration or information cannot be confirmed while at the driver's license center, the Department of State will mail him or her a voter ID card.
"We believe these updates to our process will meet the (state) Supreme Court standard that voter ID cards be liberally accessible," Secretary of the Commonwealth Carol Aichele said in a news release.
The Supreme Court's decision to push the state's new voter ID law back to a lower court for further review is based mostly on the issue of whether or not there is "liberal access" to acceptable voter ID cards for eligible voters. The Commonwealth Court is expected to make a decision soon regarding that issue.
Meanwhile, 48 of Pennsylvania's driver's license centers that are normally closed on Mondays will be open on Monday, Nov. 5—the day before Election Day—to better serve residents with last-minute voter ID needs.
In recent months, PennDOT has worked closely with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)—the union representing its driver's license center workers—to reach this agreement.
"I applaud the efforts of AFSCME to work with us on this important effort," PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch said in a news release. "Our employees have been working tirelessly to be certain that any Pennsylvanian who needs an ID for voting purposes has it, and efforts like this show our commitment to getting the job done."
This article originally appeared on the ChartiersValley Patch.
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