What to know about SAVE Act, voting and Ohio REAL IDs

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The SAVE Act, or Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, is a national bill requiring proof of United States citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.

According to Congress.gov, the proposed law, H.R. 22, has passed the U.S. House and will move on to the U.S. Senate, so the timing of when or if it will become law is still uncertain. While the bill will impact all voters, many women who have changed their names due to marriage or other reasons are particularly concerned about what proof they will need to verify their status as American citizens.

The Ohio Secretary of State's website lists the following types of ID all voters in the Buckeye State need to present:

• Ohio driver's license
• State of Ohio ID card
• Interim ID form issued by the Ohio BMV
• U.S. passport
• U.S. passport card
• U.S. military ID card
• Ohio National Guard ID card
• Department of Veterans Affairs ID card

All photo IDs must have the following:

• An expiration date that has not passed
• Photograph of the voter
• Voter’s name, which must substantially conform to the voter’s name as it appears in the Poll List or in the Poll Book

However, many of these ID forms presented alone will not satisfy the proposed federal law.

While the text of the SAVE Act lists “a form of identification issued consistent with … the Real ID Act of 2005 that indicates the applicant is a citizen of the United States,” Ohioans should know that Ohio Real ID cards do not indicate citizenship. The League of Women Voters of Ohio notes in a fact sheet that only five states -- Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont and Washington -- display a person's citizenship.

Additionally, the League of Women Voters states that when a person's name does not match their birth certificate or naturalization papers, the federal law will defer to each state in deciding how to determine citizenship.

Here is the complete list of options for proof of citizenship that Ohioans will have to satisfy under the SAVE Act:

(1) A form of identification issued consistent with the requirements of the Real ID Act of 2005 that indicates the applicant is a citizen of the United States.

(2) A valid United States passport.

(3) The applicant's official United States military identification card, together with a United States military record of service showing that the applicant's place of birth was in the United States.

(4) A valid government-issued photo identification card issued by a federal, state or tribal government showing that the applicant’s place of birth was in the United States.

(5) A valid government-issued photo identification card issued by a federal, state or tribal government other than an identification described in paragraphs (1) through (4), but only if presented together with one or more of the following:

(A) A certified birth certificate issued by a State, a unit of local government in a State, or a Tribal government which—
(i) was issued by the state, unit of local government, or tribal government in which the applicant was born;
(ii) was filed with the office responsible for keeping vital records in the state;
(iii) includes the full name, date of birth, and place of birth of the applicant;
(iv) lists the full names of one or both of the parents of the applicant;
(v) has the signature of an individual who is authorized to sign birth certificates on behalf of the state, unit of local government, or tribal government in which the applicant was born;
(vi) includes the date that the certificate was filed with the office responsible for keeping vital records in the state; and
(vii) has the seal of the state, unit of local government, or tribal government that issued the birth certificate.

(B) An extract from a United States hospital record of birth created at the time of the applicant's birth which indicates that the applicant’s place of birth was in the United States.

(C) A final adoption decree showing the applicant’s name and that the applicant’s place of birth was in the United States.

(D) A Consular Report of Birth Abroad of a citizen of the United States or a certification of the applicant’s Report of Birth of a United States citizen issued by the Secretary of State.

(E) A Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship issued by the Secretary of Homeland Security or any other document or method of proof of United States citizenship issued by the Federal government pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act.

(F) An American Indian Card issued by the Department of Homeland Security with the classification ‘KIC.’