In the News

During a recent visit to Buena Vista (BV), U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen spoke about the SAVE (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility) Act. The SAVE Act requires voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship at the time of registration and a photo ID at the time of voting.

Only U.S. citizens can vote in elections. This is something on which both parties tend to agree.

“That is the law of the land,” said Pettersen.

She continued, “We know that this is not an issue. A handful of people have been identified as voting when they were undocumented, and it’s actually very bad. This is not something that they’re pursuing because. . . it’s a federal felony charge, and they would never be able to pursue any type of residency in the United States having that in their background.”

The fact is that noncitizens voting has not been a pervasive issue.

The rare occurrence of improper voting leaves a paper trail, which leads to consequences.

President Trump and many Republicans have pushed the narrative that Democrats let migrants into the country to vote. There is no evidence of this. The rhetoric reflects the racist “great replacement” conspiracy theory.

In 2016, the first election featuring widespread accusations of noncitizen voting, improper votes accounted for 0.0001 percent across 42 jurisdictions with 23.5 million votes. 40 of the 42 jurisdictions reported no known incidents of noncitizen voting that year.

The Brennan Center’s report, The Truth About Voter Fraud, found voter fraud incident rates to be between 0.0003 and 0.0025 percent. Many anomalies can be explained by clerical error or bad data. Many studies have agreed that voter fraud is exceptionally rare.

Despite these facts, the Trump administration continues to push for the SAVE Act.

“If the SAVE Act goes into effect, it will disenfranchise millions of Americans,” commented Pettersen.

A 2023 survey from the Brennan Center found that approximately 21.3 million Americans would not be able to “quickly find” the needed documents. More than 3.8 million of those Americans don’t have the documents at all.

This does not mean some of these Americans could not acquire the needed documents to vote. However, some may find the process too difficult or too expensive.

The SAVE Act would also disproportionately impact married women, transgender and gender nonconforming Americans, and others who have changed their names at some point in their lives. Pettersen observed there have been times as an elected official that she would not have been able to vote.

“You would either have to show your Social Security card, your birth certificate, or a passport that isn’t expired, and they have to match your state ID,” said Pettersen.

“So imagine if this goes into effect and people fleeing to try to get their information, most people not even knowing that this happened, trying to vote, not being able to. How many people, have you all tried to get your passport lately?” she continued. “It’s not a fun process. . . They are underfunding all of these services, and then they want to say, you have to go and get all these things. So we have to stop the SAVE Act.”

Pettersen added that, if passed, it would make her own seat impossible or very difficult to win because of the number of people who wouldn’t be able to vote.

“They know that. It is part of their plan to try to rig the election before it even happens.”

A proposed amendment in the Senate would also restrict voting by mail, eliminate universal mail-in voting, and only allow mail-in-ballots under specific circumstances (illness, disability, travel, or military service). Republicans are also attaching anti-transgender provisions to the SAVE Act.

As passed by the House, a citizen would need to provide in-person documentation when registering or updating voter registration.

The majority of people would need to show a current U.S. passport or certified birth certificate alongside a valid driver’s license or government-issued photo identification.

Other acceptable documentation could be:

• Real ID showing citizenship (only available in Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont, and Washington)
• Military ID and service record stating the person was born in the U.S.
• Government-issued photo ID that shows a U.S. birthplace
• Hospital birth record, adoption decree, consular birth report, naturalization certificate, or American Indian card with the classification KIC.

The requirement to show these documents in person could create barriers, particularly for working parents, people with disabilities, older adults, and citizens in rural areas.

A voter could also sign an affidavit attesting their citizenship if they have no access to required documentation. An election official would then need to determine if there is sufficient proof and sign their own affidavit.

David Becker, founder and executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation & Research, stated in a March 18 briefing that the SAVE Act “would incredibly negatively impact voters across the political spectrum. . . I don’t think there’s anyone who can say definitively, if this were to pass, which party would be hurt more by it.”

Becker guessed that Republicans may actually be hit hardest “because a lot of the voters who have difficulty digging up their documentary proof of citizenship are Republicans.”

To combat the SAVE Act, Pettersen stated Congress could use a “Byrd Bath” to remove policy language should Republicans attempt to pass it under reconciliation (requiring only 51 votes).

Reconciliation is used to implement budget resolution policies. Policies outside of this scope are consider “extraneous.” The Byrd rule allows centers considered by these extraneous provisions to call for a point of order. The Byrd rule can only be waived with a three-fifths majority.

“Our only hope to stop the SAVE Act is the Byrd Bath to throw out the language that they’re trying to pass through and the filibuster,” said Pettersen.

A valid passport or updated birth certificate could be needed by voters whose name does not match their birth certificate.

First time passport applicants in Colorado can pick up an application at their local Post Office. Applicants must gather the necessary documentation, bring an eligible passport photo, and schedule an in-person appointment to submit the application. Citizens should apply for a passport several months in advance as waiting times can vary.

The application fee is $130 for a passport book with a $35 acceptance fee for an adult first-time applicant. There can be additional fees for having a proper photo taken and printed to include with the application.

More detailed information on applying for a passport is available at USPS.com.

To update a birth certificate, a voter can submit an application to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE).

An adult must contact their local court to obtain a certified copy of a legal name change order before submitting the birth certificate correction form.

The CDPHE is currently processing forms received on or before January 29, 2026. Estimated processing time is thirty business days from the date the form is received.

Requesting a copy of a birth certificate costs $25. The fee for a correction or change is $25 and $20 to exchange an old certificate.

More information about the SAVE Act, including analysis of claims on both sides of the aisle, is available from FactCheck.org.

Pettersen’s office provides assistance to constituents navigating federal agencies.