It’s called a poll tax, and it’s supposed to be illegal.
A lot of things are supposed to be illegal.
Enforcement is the only part legality that really matters.
It’s called a poll tax, and yes it’s supposed to be illegal. What godforsaken state (they all are in their own special way.) is pulling that?
Any state that requires ID to vote + any state that charges a fee for said ID. Granted, ID’s are used for more than that, it’s still ultimately a poll tax.
It’s not a regular ID to vote. It’s a regular ID.
You need an ID to vote, but you can use it for many other things too.
If getting an ID is a barrier for you to vote, then talk to your representatives and they might be able to help you out.
It should be illegal but Roberts doesn’t give a shit.
You’re thinking of the 24th Amendment, which reads:
The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.
The way your state (and many others) gets around this is because the fee to get your ID is not technically a tax. It’s a fee. It’s a rather silly semantic difference, but that’s how the law works. You’re not paying a tax, and your right to vote isn’t being restricted because you didn’t pay a tax. You are being required to have a photo ID to vote, and the form of photo ID you’ve chosen to get (which might well be the easiest to access) requires you pay a fee to acquire.
Yes, this seems like a minor pedantic difference, but that’s kinda the point. The people who push these voter ID laws are doing the exact same thing people in the Jim Crow South did when they created poll taxes, poll tests, grandfather clauses, etc. They are trying to skirt around a law (in this case, the 24th Amendment, back then the 15th Amendment) in order to restrict the right to vote from people who should be protected.
If you are unable to afford the fee for a state id then you would be considered indigent and would be able to get some kind of waver for the fee.
So something is only a fee if you can’t afford it?
Reverse. It’s only a fee if you can afford it. If you can’t afford it, it’s free.
Technically you still paid money, j just not a meaningful amount compared to your total.
I don’t think you get what I was saying. I’m not debating the definition of the word “fee.”
I’m saying that in most states in the USA, there’s often a fee for many things that can get gotten completely for free if you prove your income is low enough.
So I guess you could say you “pay a fee” of the extra time and hassle to prove your low income. But for something like a state ID, for instance, you can get one absolutely free (no money paid) if your income is low enough.
I did misunderstand. You were responding to
Something is only a fee if you can’t afford it
Which I understood in the general case. Like I’ve heard of rich jerks that park illegally because the fee isn’t enough to bother them.
Ah yes. “If you’re rich, nothing is illegal, there’s just a fee”
That’s definitely a thing, but something different.
