If you’ve been following the news lately, you’ve probably heard a lot of acronyms being thrown around—the SAVE Act, the SAVE America Act, the SAVE Program, the MEGA bill—and if you’re feeling confused, you’re not alone. As Nebraska’s primary election approaches and the general election draws closer, conversations about voting and election policy are accelerating, often without clear explanations of what these proposals actually are or how they differ.
So let’s break it down. Here’s what each of these acronyms means, how they could impact Nebraska’s elections, and why it matters for voters who care about a fair, accessible, and secure democracy.
The SAVE Act and the SAVE America Act
What it is: The SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act) is a bill in Congress centered on proof of citizenship when registering to vote or updating your voter registration. This bill passed the U.S. House in early 2025, but is stalled in the Senate. Another bill, the SAVE America act, strongly mimics the language of the SAVE act and was introduced as another pathway for this measure to advance. This bill was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this week.
What it means for voters: Under the SAVE act, when eligible voters register to vote or update their voter registration, they would be required to provide proof of citizenship (i.e. a certified birth certificate, passport, or social security card). The SAVE America Act would expand upon this by adding a federal requirement for voter ID. This could harm thousands of voters including those in rural areas, senior citizens, naturalized citizens, and anyone who cannot readily provide these documents.
The SAVE Program
What it is: The SAVE (Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements) Program is a federal database used to verify immigration status for non-citizens applying for public benefits.
What it means for voters: On its own, the SAVE program has no impact on the electoral process; however, some legislation, like LB884, has proposed utilizing the SAVE program as a part of verifying voters eligibility. This could endanger voter roll integrity, cause undue purges of otherwise eligible voters and risk Nebraskans’ data security.
The MEGA Act
What it is: The MEGA (Make Elections Great Again) Act is a proposed federal law aimed at changing how federal elections (such as for U.S. President, U.S. Senate, and U.S. House) are run across the United States. The bill would set new nationwide restrictions for voting that states must follow for federal elections, even though states traditionally manage their own elections.
What it means for voters: The MEGA Act has all of the harmful impacts of the SAVE Act in addition to adding restrictions around how states run federal elections. For Nebraskans this means:
- Adding restrictions to our current voter ID laws and prohibiting use of student IDs
- Restricting vote-by-mail and eliminating the automatic mailing of mail-in ballots, especially damaging for the 11 counties in Nebraska that are run exclusively through vote-by-mail. In addition to restricting accessibility, this act would severely limit who can drop off ballots and require a signed affidavit for doing so at the risk of a felony charge. It also deems mail-in ballots received after, but post marked before, election day invalid.
- Requires the state to update their voter rolls (utilizing the SAVE Program) at least every 30 days and remove voters deemed “ineligible”; thus, leading to increased administrative burden at the state and local level and potential false removals of eligible voters.
While the SAVE Act, the SAVE Program, and the MEGA Bill each work in different ways, they share a common impact: they create new, undue hurdles for voters. If legislators only passed the SAVE Act, the big change would be at registration — requiring proof of citizenship before someone’s name gets added or updated on the rolls. That change alone would hurt thousands of Nebraskans. However, if the MEGA Act passed, it would both change registration and add sweeping restrictions around voter ID, mail-in ballots, ballot handling, and federal involvement in state election operations.
So, what’s next and how can you make your voice heard? The SAVE Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives last year, the SAVE America Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this week, and the MEGA act is waiting to be voted on. That means all of these bills could be voted on at any moment, and their passage would be devastating for voters across Nebraska, and the country as a whole. Contact your federal representatives, particularly those in the U.S. Senate, and encourage them to vote NO on these bills.