House committee reports bill tightening voter ID rules and removing affidavit option

The House and Governmental Affairs Committee on Tuesday voted 7–2 to report Senate Bill 3 19 favorably after a daylong hearing that included testimony from the secretary of state, election‑policy experts and county registrars.

Senate Bill 3 19 would replace the existing, vague “generally recognized” photo‑ID standard with a defined list of acceptable documents (Louisiana driver's license or state ID, U.S. passport, certificate of citizenship or naturalization, and tribal identification, among others). The bill would eliminate the current affidavit option that lets a voter cast a ballot without documentary proof. Voters who lack an accepted photo ID could either present documentary proof (two primary documents, or one primary and one secondary document) or cast a conditional paper ballot at the parish Registrar of Voters office and return within two days after the election to verify identity, or the conditional ballot would not be counted.

Nancy Landry, secretary of state, told the committee the measure is intended to standardize ID checks across parishes and improve confidence in election results. “This bill is about something simple but essential: ensuring that every eligible voter can vote and that every vote cast is secure and verified,” Landry said in testimony. She and the bill’s staff emphasized a delayed effective date (July 1, 2027) to allow time for a public information campaign and poll‑worker training.

Supporters said the change will close what they described as a loophole created by affidavits. Chad Ennis of the Honest Elections Project said the bill “closes the loophole” while preserving multiple options for verification; Paul Lageman of Heritage Action told the committee that requiring ID before counting provisional ballots is a common practice in many states.

Opponents warned the bill could make voting harder for some groups. Bruce Riley, who testified in opposition, said the change removes an access path that helped elders, students and people experiencing homelessness. “This bill says the affidavit is not enough,” Riley said, arguing the affidavit option mattered for voters who lack ready access to certified documents and that the two‑day verification window is too short for many people.

Committee members pressed for operational clarity. Staff and the first assistant secretary of state, Catherine Newsome, detailed the three‑step process in the bill, explained what counts as primary and secondary documentation (examples given included original or certified birth certificates, Social Security cards and voter registration notices), and described how a conditional ballot would be handled and verified by the ROV within the two‑day deadline (for a Saturday election, Newsome said the verification period would run until 04:30 Monday). Proponents said the bill will reduce the number of ballots cast without documentary verification; Landry cited an estimate that the current affidavit practice affects “around 1,800 or more” votes in a large election, a fraction of total turnout but potentially decisive in close races.

Representative Thomas moved that the committee report SB 3 19 favorably; the motion carried on a roll‑call vote with 7 yeas and 2 nays (yeas: Chair Beaulieu; Representatives Billings, Farnham, Gadbury, Lyons, Thomas and Bridal; nays: Representatives Larvadain and Marcel). The sponsor closed by reiterating that the bill intends to clarify acceptable documents and give election officials consistent guidance.

What happens next: the bill was reported favorably by committee and will move to the next step in the legislative process for further consideration.