Coming to the House floor … election reform in Pennsylvania.

No, really.

Now whether it gets done or not is another story.

The House State Government Committee, chaired by Carol Hill-Evans (D-York) and Brad Roae (R-Crawford/Erie), voted to move House Bill 771 and House Bill 1396 out of committee to the entire House floor for consideration. Both votes passed by 14-12 counts with HB 771 getting through with the support of Democrats Nancy Guenst (D-Montgomery/Philadelphia) and John Inglis (D-Allegheny).

Sponsored by Rep. Thomas Mehaffie (R-Dauphin), HB 771 would require voters to present a valid ID to cast their vote in the Commonwealth.

Questioned by members of the committee, Mehaffie said his legislation does provide ways for those who may not have a verifiable ID with them on Election Day with an opportunity to still cast their vote, including a process for vouching for a person’s identity as well as signed affadavits.

“This bill is not a be-all, end-all fix,” he said. But added that the “bill does exactly what we need it to do.”

Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D-Philadelphia) voiced his opposition to the bill while noting that “if people can’t trust that their vote will be counted, that’s wrong.” But the former statewide candidate for office also said that the bill doesn’t address the real issues at stake.

“We need to solve problems of voter irregularlities and voter fraud,” he said. “We do not have demonstrable evidence that leads us to make the point that we need to address voter ID in this way. Let’s talk about the issues that do exist. This legislation doesn’t address those.”

Kenyatta also called out those who have fanned the flames of voter fraud.

“If you want people to have faith in election system, don’t lie about the election system.”

Rep. Heather Boyd (D-Delaware) voted no, citing that when she and all elected officials were sworn in, they vowed to uphold the U.S. Constitution.

“I would be in opposition to that by voting for something that would deny the right to vote.”

HB 1396 is sponsored by Speaker of the House Joanna McClinton (D-Delaware/Philadelphia) and is a 98-page election omnibus bill that covers administration of elections, drop boxes, and early voting among other issues.

Speaking in support of the bill, Rep. Ben Waxman (D-Philadelphia) complemented the Speaker, saying that the legislation is a “comprehensive approach to election reform that tries to dramatically improve the process and makes administration of elections much smoother.”

Roae spoke of his concerns about the process of HB 1396, noting that just 20 hours passed from the introduction of the bill to its appearance before the committee.

“That’s not adequate time for a 98-page bill,” he said. “I’m concerned with all the things that counties would have to do. I’m still struggling to understand everything in the bill and cannot, in good conscience, vote for it.”

Hill-Evans had the final word, saying that the bill “might not be the perfect product, but it is a darn good product.”

“We are thrilled that Speaker McClinton has introduced a series of reforms that would strengthen our democracy, most importantly by providing for an early voting period where voters can vote on machines the same as they do on election day,” said Salewa Ogunmefun, Executive Director of Pennsylvania Voice.

“It is clear that there is enormous appetite among voters from both parties for a convenient early voting option, and we look forward to this bill receiving a vote on the House floor. It was extremely disappointing, however, that in the same hearing, a voter ID bill that would put up unnecessary obstacles to voters who are trying to make their voices heard at the ballot box. We believe that democracy works best when everyone is able to participate, and voter ID requirements will not only limit participation, it will add unnecessary burdens on poll workers. We should be fully focused on strengthening our democracy, not taking one step forward and one step back.”