Advisory group for Voter ID law to meet Thursday

A county group formed to help voters deal with Pennsylvania's controversial photo ID law will conduct its first meeting at 2 p.m., Thursday,  at the Bucks County Planning Commission's offices in Doylestown.

The meeting of the Bucks County Voter ID Educational Advisory Group will be open to the public in the 4^th floor Barney Grunmeier conference room, at 1260 Almshouse Rd.

The county commissioners formed the group of 11 volunteers to gather information and make recommendations on ways to educate the public about the new law. Starting with the November elections, voters will be required to present a valid photo ID at all polling places, or they will be turned away.

Voters who do not have a driver's license or government-issued or student ID with an expiration date can get a free photo ID card from a PennDOT driver's license center. They must present a Social Security card, two proofs of residency and an original birth certificate, passport, certificate of U.S. citizenship or certificate of naturalization.

Producing those documents, such as a birth certificate with a raised seal, has been a problem for some voters. Critics of the law say it will disenfranchise poor and elderly voters, who may have difficulty finding the time and the documents to get the ID card.

The group, chaired by Richard Coe of the nonprofit group Kids Voting, is scheduled to present its recommendations to the commissioners at their July 11 meeting.

Members of the committee, or their representatives, are: