A package of bills currently in committee at the House would call for more requirements for voting application — including presenting a photo ID – and would require citizens to pass a training class to run an election drive.

Because this bill package would make the voter registration process a muddled mess for first-time voters and disenfranchised individuals, it’s a poor idea for the state.

Voting keeps young people involved and in the loop of what’s happening in the U.S. It’s a key part of democratic rule, and it’s disappointing more is being done to prevent young people from being a part of the process than to facilitate their entry.

The bill would impose a training course on members of third-party organizations that assist students in registering to vote. Making it more difficult for voting groups — regardless of party — to sign up students has the unfortunate effect of squelching volunteerism. It will be much harder to find volunteers to sign students up to vote when those volunteers have to go through a mandatory training course.

Also, it’s not as if election results in Michigan — or anywhere, for that matter — are being thrown out on a regular basis because of voter fraud. Operating under the idea that our elections are under siege from third-party registration drives is a false and foolish presumption. There hardly appears to be a need for more voter registration regulation.

This bill package seems to be a solution in search of a problem.

There is something negative to be said about pulling people off of the street and equipping them to enable students to vote, and voter registration mistakes lead to students being unable to vote every year. However, the alternative of making students and organizations jump through multiple hoops to vote is unpalatable.

Young people should be welcomed into the voting process, not made to scramble around in an attempt to do their civic duty. Nowadays, there is an emphasis placed on getting the youth of America to take advantage of their right to vote. Rock the Vote is a nonprofit organization dedicated solely to engaging young people in the voting process, and there are numerous similar groups across the U.S.

There can be an effort to help young people register to vote correctly that doesn’t uncannily represent a legislative maze.

Ultimately, the process of democracy is best served by getting all people out and participating, as well as making the process easy for first-time voters, so they have an incentive to participate. A bill that makes the introduction to democracy frustrating and confusing to first-time voters will dissuade them from ever really getting into it, which helps no one.

It doesn’t help the individuals who don’t vote because it makes it harder for their voice to be heard, and it makes it more difficult for any elected figure to best represent the totality of people they oversee.