Voter Photo ID Law challenged

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit saying the new Voter Photo-ID law is unconstitutional. The lawsuit says the law will disenfranchise thousands of Missourians who cannot afford to obey its requirements to provide proper documents to get their I-D cards. It also says the legislature has violated the Hancock amendment, which prohibits the legislature requiring local governments to spend money without providing state funds to pay those costs. The lawsuit filed in Jefferson City asks a judge to block implementation of the law, which will apply for the first time to the November election. The legislature passed the bill during the regular session that ended in May. However, it did not approve any state appropriations to pay various costs of the program.