Report: N.C. Voter ID Law Could Cost State $20 Million Or More
N.C. taxpayers tens of millions over next three years, exacerbating budget shortfall
DURHAM, N.C. – A bill North Carolina Republicans plan to introduce that would require
voters to produce a photo ID card at the polls could cost the state more than $20 million
dollars over three years, just as leaders struggle to close a $3.7 billion budget shortfall, a
new report finds.
Drawing on datafrom other states, the Facing South/Institute for Southern Studies analysis
concludes that a full-scale voter ID program could easily cost North Carolina
taxpayers $18 to $25 million over three years, just slightly more than the estimated
price tag for a similar program in Missouri.
“Even in good times, voter ID laws were suspect given the miniscule number of voter
impersonation cases and the unnecessary barriers they pose to many voters,” said Chris
Kromm, director of the non-profit Institute and author of the analysis.
“Now, with North Carolina poised to eliminate 18,000 teaching jobs due to the budget
crisis, such an expensive bill would seem nearly impossible to justify,” Kromm said.
Basic costs that come with implementing a state voter ID bill include:
- VOTER EDUCATION: State officials agree that voter ID laws require aggressive publicity efforts to inform voters and ensure they aren’t turned away at the polls. In
2010, Missouri estimated it would cost $16.9 million over three years for TV
announcements and other outreach to the state’s 4 million voters; it could cost North
Carolina $14 million or more over three years to inform its 6 million voters.
- WHO PAYS FOR I.D.? With studies showing that seven to 11 percent of citizens don’t
have a photo ID, demands on DMV offices for ID cards will go up — and so will
expenses if North Carolina issues free cards to avoid costly lawsuits which argue the
costs of an ID card amount to a poll tax. In 2009, Wisconsin projected a total $2.4
million cost for ID cards; Missouri estimated $3.4 million.
- IMPLEMENTING VOTER ID: Voter ID laws add dozens of new costs for state and local
officials, from updating forms and websites to hiring and training staff to inspect IDs
and handle provisional ballots on Election Day. In 2009, Maryland estimated it
could cost one county over $95,000 each election just for precinct judges. With
agencies strapped for cash, the N.C. legislature would likely need to set aside
millions of dollars each year to help cover these new administrative expenses.
ID programs. Facing South/Institute examined the fiscal notes, or cost estimates that
accompany proposed bills, for voter ID measures in half a dozen states, and found
lawmakers routinely failed to include at least one basic expense needed to
implement a voter ID law in their cost estimates, such as voter education, added
administrative expenses and hiring and training new poll workers.
In other cases, lawmakers acknowledged the added costs, but merely stated they would be
“absorbed” by existing agencies — an unlikely scenario today, given the pressures to slash
budgets at every level of government.
“For years, states have low-balled the costs of voter ID laws and pushed much of the
burden onto local government,” Kromm said. “That might have worked before, but in
today’s economic environment, as local lawmakers are forced to cut key services and
eliminate core staff, they’re unlikely to put up with such budgetary sleights of hand.”
Please see the following chart for a list of likely costs needed to carry at a voter ID
bill in North Carolina.
For more information and background, visit: www.southernstudies.org
