I hereby object to the proposed changes to the definition of “valid” contained in Vol. 30 ISS.23 of the Virginia Register of Regulations dated July 14, 2014.  I support the current (June 10) version of the definition of “valid” because the purpose of law has been fulfilled whether the ID is current or not.

For the purpose of voting, the use of a photo ID is only for identification, to ascertain whether the voter is he/she says they are by reasonably resembling the photo on the ID.  Whether the photo ID has expired or not is irrelevant, because the ID is being used simply for this purpose (voter identification) and not for the purpose it was originally issued for, i.e., driving, passport, military ID, etc. The person’s identity does not expire when the ID expires, only their right to do what the original ID was issued for expires.

If there is a concern about possible fraudulent voting, there are other safeguards and procedures in place to deal with this. 

Finally, the issue with a photo ID may hinge more on how closely the voter resembles the photo rather than how old the photo ID is.  For example, Virginia driver’s licenses and U.S. personal passports are usually issued for a period of 10 years.  A person’s identity can change, sometimes dramatically, over that time period.  So even ascertaining a positive identification from an unexpired VA drivers license or U.S. passport may be difficult in some instances.