LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The SAVE Act is back.
Or maybe, SAVE Acts.
Congress is set to take up new versions of a bill that passed the House in 2025 but failed in the Senate — legislation that would require definitive proof of citizenship before a person could register or cast a vote.
Steve Sebelius talks to Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar about what impact the SAVE Act would have on our elections:
Republicans say the measure is needed to avoid the problem of non-citizens voting in elections, a problem that critics say is nearly non-existent.
Indeed, a preliminary review of nearly 50 million voting records conducted by U.S. Customs and Immigration Services found just 10,000 records it flagged for further investigation, or 02.%.
But President Donald Trump and others have insisted that voter fraud is real, that it has cost Republicans elections, and that some version of the SAVE Act is needed to end the problem.
Under the U.S. Constitution, states generally decide how to hold elections for federal representatives, but "...the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations."
Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar told Channel 13 on Monday that the bills were unnecessary, would be burdensome and expensive to carry out, and could cause chaos in Nevada's elections.
He echoed concerns raised by national critics of the bill that say many people don't have access to identity documents that prove citizenship, such as a passport or a birth certificate. Women who have changed their names in marriage but have yet to update their documents may also run into problems, he said.
"I think this bill was put together by a bunch of individuals who have never administered an election, or understand what it takes to administer an election and to ensure that you are giving the people their fundamental right to vote, the opportunity to vote, and when you start making changes, you better understand all the unintended consequences," Aguilar said.
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According to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, about half of Americans don't have a passport, and millions don't have a paper copy of their birth certificate, which can take time and money to obtain. The center warns that legitimate voters could be disenfranchised as a result.
Aguilar said the federal legislation is unnecessary.
"I think it's a solution to a problem that doesn't exist," Aguilar said. "Nevada, we do not have non-citizens voting. And if there is the occasional case of a non-citizen voting, our checks and balances find it, and we will hold those people accountable for violating the law."
Indeed, the conservative Heritage Foundation maintains a national election fraud database. (It covers non-citizen voting as well as other forms of fraud, such as voting in the name of another person.) The database shows just 11 cases in Nevada from 2011 to 2021, a period of time when millions of votes were cast in the Silver State.
Other provisions in the bills being considered by both the House and the Senate include:
- Purging ineligible voters every 30 days.
- Prohibiting universal mail voting — the most popular way to cast a ballot in Nevada — by stipulating that only voters who request a mail ballot could receive one.
- Requiring all ballots to be received by Election Day. (Now, ballots in Nevada can be postmarked by Election Day and received up to four days later and still be counted.)
- Prohibiting the use of student identification — even from state schools — in order to vote. Tribal IDs without an expiration date would also not be acceptable.
- Holding election officials responsible for registration errors, even those made in good faith, exposing them to legal risk.
On top of all that, the bill would provide no federal money to carry out these provisions, placing the burden on states and local governments. Aguilar said his office would have to request additional funds from the Legislature and Gov. Joe Lombardo if the bills went into effect.
"I think people in Nevada want leadership," Aguilar said. "They don't want chaos. And I think what this is driving towards is chaos. If you truly want to be a leader within the election space, sit down with the election officials at the ground level, make the investment that needs to be made and really work on the issues that are challenging our elections."
The issue may be mooted somewhat in Nevada because of a citizen initiative that may amend the Constitution to require an ID to vote. That initiative passed in 2024 by a 73%-27% margin. If it passes again in 2026, it will go into effect starting in the 2028 elections.
If you're wondering why the initiative has to pass twice, you're not the only one. A viewer recently reached out to me to ask, Why do we have to approve the voter identification amendment again in 2026, when voters already approved it in 2024?
Here's why:
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