Senate Overrides Voter ID Veto

The Arkansas Senate overrode Gov. Mike Beebe’s veto of SB 2, a bill that requires a photo ID to vote.

Known as the voter ID bill, Beebe vetoed the measure earlier this week saying that it was “an expensive solution in search of a problem.”

A cost analysis of the bill indicated it would cost about $300,000 to implement. Beebe said in his veto letter of SB 2 that the estimate did not “take into account the ongoing costs that the taxpayers will continue to bear in future years.”

The bill has passed both chambers of the legislature largely along party lines. Republicans favor the voter ID bill, while Democrats have opposed it. The legislature has overridden gubernatorial vetoes of two abortion-related bills earlier in the session.

The House will receive the bill now for action. It could vote on a veto override as early as Thursday.