FRANKFORT — The Kentucky House has agreed with changes the Senate made to one of its election bills — including raising political donations limits for candidates in the state.  When it first left the House, House Bill 139 was an annual “clean up” bill for election policies. The Senate un veiled a new version last week, adding chunks of other election bills that had been moving in the General Assembly, such as eliminating Social Security and public benefits cards as proof of identification to vote and allowing judicial candidates to publicly disclose their political party affiliation. The House agreed with the changes Tuesday by a 76-17 vote. Most Republicans, who have the majority in the chamber, voted in favor of the Senate changes, while most Democrats voted against them. However, a handful of lawmakers on both sides did not log a vote. Rep. Beverly Chester-Burton, of Shively, was the only Democrat to vote in favor of the bill.  The bill’s primary sponsor, Rep. Jennifer Decker, R-Waddy, explained some of the bill changes in response to a question.  The Senate version increased the limit that donors can give to political candidates, mostly in line with federal contributions limits, which are adjusted for inflation. It also would expressly permit judicial candidates to disclose their political party affiliation, despite being in a nonpartisan race, which is from House Bill 534, which narrowly passed the House earlier this session.  Another HB 534 addition would authorize the State Board of Elections to enter agreements with federal agencies to identify deceased people and non-U.S. citizens who are registered to vote in the state. Kentucky election officials are currently facing a lawsuit from the U.S. Department of Justice, which is seeking access to sensitive voter data. The bill requires that someone flagged by the federal database as a noncitizen could not vote until presenting their county clerk with proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, a U.S. passport or Certificate of Naturalization. The county clerk would have to alert the State Board of Elections to the proof.  Another bill in the mix is Senate Bill 154, from Sen. Lindsey Tichenor, R-Smithfield, which mainly said that Social Security and public benefits cards cannot be used as proof of a voter’s identity. It passed the Senate in February with a 31-7 vote. Some House Democrats urged fellow House members to not agree with the bill on Tuesday. Democratic Caucus Whip Lindsey Burke, of Lexington, said the Senate had done “irreparable damage” to the original House bill.  “I personally believe that less money in politics would be good. I don’t think a pay-to-play system that benefits wealthy people and corporations is what’s good for Kentucky.”  HB 139 now goes to Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear for further action. When asked about the bill last week, he said making “voting harder is un-American.” However, if Beshear issues a veto, the GOP-controlled General Assembly can override it.  A spokesperson for Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams previously told the Kentucky Lantern that Adams “strongly supports the current version.” The post KY House backs Senate-overhauled elections bill, including bumping up donation limits appeared first on The Lexington Times. ...read more read less