Common Cause v. Billups In 2005, the Georgia legislature passed
a statute requiring in-person voters to provide state-issued
photo identification at the polls. Previous to the new law,
birth certificates, Social Security cards, Certified
Naturalization Documents, current utility bills, bank
statements, government checks or paychecks, and other government
documents were all acceptable forms of identification. Even if a
voter could not produce any of these, he or she could still sign
an affidavit and vote. Although another part of the new law
eliminated previous restrictions that significantly limited the
circumstances under which a voter could vote absentee and so
allowed all voters to vote absentee, absentee voters would not
be required to provide a Photo ID. The Georgia Legislature also
doubled the cost of State Identity Cards from $10 to $20. On
September 19, 2005, the Lawyers’ Committee and other advocates
filed suit in federal district court in Rome, Georgia, alleging
that the photo identification require