Call it voter ID, part 2.

After a federal judge struck down the voter identification bill passed by the Georgia legislature last year, lawmakers are close to passing a bill that addresses the chief shortcoming outlined by the judge.

Last year’s bill was chided by U.S. District Judge Harold Murphy for requiring photo identification offered by the state which voters had to pay for, making it the equivalent of a “poll tax.”

So this year’s voter ID bill requires that free “voter identification cards” be issued by the board of registrars in each county. The cards will display the voter’s photo, birth date, full legal name and physical measurements, and it can only be used for voter identification purposes.

Also, the card cannot be issued to persons who already have a valid driver’s license or valid photo ID card.

The new voter ID bill, SB 84, passed the House of Representatives Thursday 110-64. It will be voted on later by the Senate before it can be considered for signature by Gov. Sonny Perdue.

Fayette representatives voting in favor of SB 84 were Dan Lakly and John Yates. Voting against were Roberta Abdul-Salaam and Darryl Jordan. Rep. Virgil Fludd did not record a vote, according to information on the legislature’s Web site.

Critics of voter ID initiatives say such actions disenfranchise voters by making it more difficult to vote, particularly the poor and minorities. But proponents of such measures say it can help prevent voter fraud and it makes sense because you can’t cash a check these days without showing a photo ID.

The current Georgia law requires any one of various types of identification to be displayed by a voter before he or she casts a ballot, but it also allows voters to file affidavits certifying their identity in lieu of presenting one of the accepted forms of identification.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People opposes the voter ID bill, saying it will “unfairly burden thousands of black, poor and elderly voters.”