Nevada voter ID photo costs less than expected

CARSON CITY - Secretary of State Ross Miller said Tuesday the cost of his proposal to include photos of voters in election poll books used at polling places to prevent fraud is $787,200, far less than originally estimated.

The original estimate was between $5 million and $10 million, but that was based only on a similar proposal discussed in Minnesota.

"Less than $800,000 is a small price to pay to enhance and modernize our existing system," Miller said. "When we have the opportunity to increase access to our polling locations and further strengthen the security of our system, without disenfranchising any voters, we should do so. With 1.3 million active registered voters in Nevada, upgrading the system would only cost 60 cents per voter."

The lower cost might make the proposal more appealing to lawmakers because of tight fiscal constraints, but there are still concerns about the policy implications.

Assemblyman James Ohrenschall, D-Las Vegas, chairman of the lower house's Legislative Operations and Elections Committee, said his panel will focus on policy questions, such as whether the proposal might keep people from registering or voting.

"It seems like a common sense idea, but we need our concerns assuaged," he said.

Miller has contrasted his proposal with so-called "Voter ID" measures that might also come up for debate in the 2013 legislative session that begins Monday. It would be an upgrade to the current antiquated paper roster system by implementing electronic voter rosters with the enhanced feature of a photograph of each registered voter.

The requirement of a photograph in the new electronic roster would prevent ineligible voters from impersonating eligible voters at a polling place, Miller said. The proposal will seek to import existing photographs of eligible voters from the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles' database of driver's licenses and state identification cards.

When photographs of the eligible voters are not available through the database, poll workers would be available to take photos at the polling place at the time of voting and verify their identity by way of an affidavit.

The cost estimate is contained in a fiscal note accompanying Senate Bill 63, Miller's election modernization bill.

The note as prepared by the secretary of state's office includes $100,000 so the DMV can provide the photos needed for the electronic poll books. Polling place equipment would add another $629,200 to the cost, but there would be a $185,000 savings because of reduced printing costs and fewer polling place workers.

Contact reporter Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900.