RESOLUTION ______ Voter ID Law Whereas the struggle to extend the right to vote to all adult citizens was

a continuing theme in American history from the beginning of our country to the civil rights era, and Whereas women fought for decades for the right to vote, not achieved until the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, and Whereas thousands of African Americans marched and demonstrated, and in some cases, gave their lives, for the right to vote, not fully achieved until the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and Whereas, until passage of the Voting Rights Act, many states restricted the vote to those who could provide proof of payment of a poll tax, an heavy burden on poor people, and Whereas several states, including Pennsylvania, are attempting to reverse two centuries of progress on voting rights by passing laws requiring presentation of picture IDs in order to vote, and Whereas the stated justification of these laws, to stop voter fraud, has been repeatedly shown to be without merit, and Whereas the effect of these laws is to revive the poll tax in a new form, let it be Resolved that the State College Borough Council opposes the recently enacted voter and calls for the repeal of the one in Pennsylvania, and be it further Resolved that the State College Borough Council commends Penn State University for adding expiration dates to PSU IDs issued in the future, a requirement under the law for the use of such an ID at a polling place, and be it further Resolved that the State College Borough Council commends Penn State University for offering expiration date stickers for existing IDs, and be it further Resolved that the State College Borough Council urges all students of Penn State University who are citizens of the United States to register to vote and to request expiration date stickers from Penn State University for their existing IDs if they do not currently have any other photo ID which would satisfy the requirement under the law in order to vote, and be it further.

Resolved that the State College Borough Council urges Penn State University, in order to ensure the acceptability of its IDs at polling places, to issue new IDs with expiration dates to all current students free of charge.

ATTEST:

BOROUGH OF STATE COLLEGE

____________________________ Sharon K. Ergler Assistant Borough Secretary

By: ____________________________ Donald M. Hahn President of Council