S. 1383 – [SAVE America Act]

House Rules and Floor ProcedureHouse Rules · 2026-02-10 · 119th Congress
The House Rules Committee met to set the floor rule for S. Begins at 0:05:59
Transcript
Highlights

Title

House Rules Committee debates rule for the SAVE America Act voter ID bill

Purpose

The House Rules Committee met to set the floor rule for S. 1383, the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship and photo identification to register and vote in federal elections. House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil and Ranking Member Joseph Morelle testified as witnesses, taking questions from Rules Committee members on voter ID, provisional registration, military/spouse exemptions, and the bill's late changes, before Democratic members offered amendments on alternative ID documents, voter-roll purge protections, and a congressional stock-trading ban. Begins at0:05:59.

Who spoke

Chair (presiding, Rules Committee)0:05:59: Opened by describing the SAVE America Act as protecting citizens' voting rights through documentation and voter-roll accuracy requirements0:06:21, and recognized Ranking Member McGovern0:07:43.

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), Ranking Member0:08:15: Called the bill "a dangerous effort" rather than a messaging bill0:08:15, argued there is no evidence of widespread noncitizen voting0:09:51, said the requirements would make voting harder for disabled people, night-shift workers and deployed families0:12:21, and criticized last-minute changes made without a markup0:14:27.

Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), Chairman, House Administration Committee (witness)0:18:10: Thanked Rep. Chip Roy for his work on the bill0:18:10, explained the deployed-servicemember/spouse exemption0:19:06, cited Georgia's 2021 election law and subsequent turnout surveys as evidence voter ID does not suppress turnout0:21:07, and later defended the bill's exemption from the Paperwork Reduction Act as consistent with existing federal law1:22:34.

Rep. Joseph Morelle (D-NY), Ranking Member, House Administration Committee (witness)0:22:33: Called the SAVE Act "riddled with mistakes" and said it was rushed without a markup0:23:35, noted Sen. Murkowski's opposition0:24:02, argued the bill hands states' voter rolls to DHS0:26:43, and later offered floor amendments including provisions from the Freedom to Vote Act and a ban on congressional stock trading2:11:12.

Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN)0:44:53: Argued Democrats "actively encourage" noncitizens to register0:45:22 and cited a case of a man arrested in Iowa who was found registered and requesting a ballot in Maryland0:47:23.

Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA)1:04:15: Compared voter ID to ID requirements for buying Sudafed or boarding a plane [0:39:07/1:04:39], and cited Georgia turnout and vote totals before and after the state's 2021 election law1:06:10.

Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA)1:03:27: Raised concerns about abusive ICE conduct near polling places1:03:47, and later said roughly half of Pennsylvanians lack a passport and that student IDs would not qualify under the bill0:57:072:19:24.

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO)1:10:56: Pressed Steil and Morelle on Georgia's and Minnesota's certified 2020/2024 election results1:10:56, noting Steil would not directly say who won particular states1:17:34, and later asked whether Steil would acknowledge Trump lost the 2020 election2:34:31.

Rep. Douglas1:25:26: Asked witnesses what level of voter fraud is "acceptable"1:25:26, and cited that 36–37 states already have voter ID laws with no drop in turnout, including Indiana and Georgia1:27:18.

Rep. Hernandez1:35:23: Cited a Brennan Center analysis that 21.3 million Americans of voting age lack ready access to citizenship documents1:37:47, and questioned witnesses on the bill's changed effective date ahead of upcoming primaries1:38:04.

Rep. Terri Sewell (D-AL)2:01:15: Offered an amendment to broaden acceptable ID documents, recounting her disabled father's difficulty obtaining photo ID, including a courthouse with an out-of-order elevator2:02:02, and cited Kansas's proof-of-citizenship law, which initially flagged 12% of registrants as ineligible before 99% were found eligible2:06:18.

Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) [1:55:22 approx.]: Defended the bill's voter ID requirements as broadly popular and argued documented cases of noncitizen registration justify the legislation1:56:09.

Rep. Griffith1:59:22: Presided over closing the witness panel, thanking Steil and Morelle for testifying1:59:22.

Rep. Riley2:11:12: Briefly yielded his time to Rep. Morelle to present a floor amendment2:11:12.

Key moments

Rep. Neguse pressed Chairman Steil to confirm who won specific states in 2020 and 2024 (Arkansas, Minnesota), and Steil repeatedly declined to give a direct state-by-state answer, prompting Neguse to call it evidence Republicans are "afraid" to state basic election facts1:17:111:17:34.

Steil cited Georgia's 2021 election-integrity law and post-passage survey data showing strong voter satisfaction across demographic groups, disputing claims the law suppressed turnout0:21:071:09:35.

Morelle said Sen. Lisa Murkowski had already announced opposition to the SAVE Act and argued the bill was assembled with "band-aids" under White House pressure just before the hearing0:24:02.

Rep. Fischbach detailed an Iowa case in which a man arrested for illegal presence was found to have requested an absentee ballot in Maryland, calling it justification for stricter registration checks0:47:23.

Rep. Sewell described the burden of getting her disabled father a qualifying photo ID, including a courthouse elevator that was "out of order," to argue the bill's ID list is too narrow2:02:02.

Rep. Scanlon said roughly half of Pennsylvanians lack a passport, and noted student IDs and firearm/hunting licenses would not satisfy the bill's ID requirements0:57:072:19:46.

Rep. Hernandez cited a Brennan Center figure that 21.3 million voting-age Americans lack ready access to citizenship documents, and pressed witnesses on whether the bill's changed effective date could disenfranchise voters in imminent primaries1:37:471:38:04.

Discussion of Kansas's proof-of-citizenship law: witnesses and members disputed figures showing roughly 31,000 otherwise-eligible voters were initially blocked from registering, with 99% later found eligible, cited as a cautionary example2:06:182:23:10.

A member raised concerns that tribal identification cards, often the primary ID for Native American voters, would not qualify under the SAVE Act's documentary-proof requirements2:27:17.

Morelle's amendment proposed banning members of Congress, the president and vice president from trading individual stocks, noting a discharge petition on the issue was nearing the 218 signatures needed2:14:13.

Metadata

CommitteeHouse Rules
Chamber / CongressHouse · 119th Congress
Date2026-02-10
TypeMeeting
Witnesses
(none listed in event metadata)
Videoyoutube
Transcript346 caption blocks · 13,822 words · 3:14:12 runtime
EventCongress.gov 118965