You can shovel snow without an ID in NYC, but to get paid for it, you’ll need ID

Republican lawmakers advocating for the SAVE America Act — which would require government-issued photo ID to vote — often argue that Americans are already required to present ID for all sorts of everyday activities.

A House Republican recently said "it’s nuts" one needs an ID to buy a six-pack of beer but not to vote. (State laws vary on IDs and alcohol purchases.) Other leaders have locked in on a dreaded post-blizzard activity. 

"You can’t rent a home, you can't go to work, you can't shovel snow in New York City without an ID," Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., said during a March 19 press conference.

Britt’s shoveling remark met cold corrections on social media; people don’t need an ID to shovel their own sidewalk.

Britt’s spokesperson told PolitiFact the senator was referring to a New York City program that hires residents to shovel snow following a major snowfall, and requires workers to provide two forms of ID. Other Republicans, including President Donald Trump and Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, have talked about this requirement when advocating for the SAVE America Act.

"If you apply for that job, you need to show two original forms of ID and a Social Security card," Trump said Feb. 24 during his State of the Union address. "Yet they don't want identification for the greatest privilege of them all: Voting in America." 

On Feb. 22, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani held a press conference amid a snowstorm and was asked whether snow shovelers had to provide documentation. 

Mamdani said yes, and that this was part of a longstanding program in which the city pays shovelers, so it asks for ID. "Federal law requires that employers get authorization and documentation to pay people for their work," Mamdani said. "We are not allowed to just cut checks to individuals for their work."

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a lawyer and senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, an advocacy group, said that the ID requirement stems from the Immigration Reform and Conrol Act of 1986 signed by President Ronald Reagan. That law, he said, requires that "every person who wants to work in the United States now has to produce proof of their eligibility." The requirement applies to U.S. citizens and noncitizens.

States set their own voter ID requirements, and the majority of them require ID to cast ballots, though with some variation on what form of ID is acceptable. Alabama, for instance, requires a photo ID to vote and has a long list of acceptable ID cards, including student IDs. Alabama law also says that voters who lack photo ID can vote if election officials sign a sworn affidavit stating that the person is eligible.

New York does not require all voters to present identification when they show up at the polls. But if a voter does not provide valid ID when they register, they must show ID at the polling place when voting for the first time. Only U.S. citizens can vote in federal elections.

The Trump-backed SAVE America legislation would establish identical laws for every state and require that voters show nonexpired, government-issued photo IDs to cast their ballots. Acceptable IDs include driver’s licenses, state-issued IDs, passports, military IDs or IDs issued by tribal governments. Student IDs, which are allowed in some states, would be banned as voter ID.

People would also have to provide documentary proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate to register to vote. And people who changed their names to something other than what shows on their birth certificates would have to provide documentation showing the name change was legal or sign an affidavit.

The House passed the SAVE America Act in February. Debate in the Senate began March 17.

Our ruling

Britt said, "You can't shovel snow in New York City without an ID." 

Britt’s statement ignores critical facts: People can shovel their own sidewalk without an ID, but people need to present identification to get hired and paid by the city. That ID requirement, for any employment, stems from federal law. 

We rate this statement Mostly False.

Chief Correspondent Louis Jacobson contributed to this fact-check.