Republican State Sen. Rick Williams of Milledgeville says he wants to make it a little easier for people to vote in Georgia elections.

Fellow lawmakers should embrace that sentiment.

Williams sponsored a bill that would, among other things, give workers time off during the early voting period to go cast a ballot.

His proposal regarding time off should be a standalone bill that is not tied to other controversial voting measures.

Employers are already required to allow employees up to two hours to go vote on Election Day, and the proposal would simply extend that requirement to the early voting period.

A bill that included the time off proposal, but also included other more complicated and problematic measures, made it out of the Senate by Crossover Day and has now been amended and approved by the House and should be reconsidered in a few days.

Two hours off work to cast a ballot during early voting is a proposal that is in the best interest of the people of Georgia, regardless of party affiliation.

The problem is that the proposal is packaged inside a bill containing the other problematic language, placing additional requirements regarding absentee ballot applications and post-election reviews that should be considered separately and under their own merits — not tied to whether or not an hourly wage employee can go vote.

While voter turnout in most statewide and federal general elections has been robust, turnout for local elections, by contrast, is abysmal across the state.

Turnout also drops off significantly during runoff elections.

Both Republicans and Democrats should want as many registered voters to vote as possible.

Elections should reflect the will of all the people of Georgia, not just those who have the flexibility to leave work long enough to cast a ballot while others may fear losing their jobs.

State lawmakers pandered to a vocal minority following the 2020 elections and passed senseless election restrictions in the previous legislative session that seemed to be more about capturing headlines than shoring up elections.

Now it is good to see some of those same lawmakers get behind proposals that will make it easier for ordinary folks to cast a ballot.

So, while that part of this Republican-led bill deserves bipartisan support, why package it with other provisions that may prove problematic?

It is no secret that this is all part of the gamesmanship that is part and parcel of the legislative process and a disservice to the people of Georgia.

Jim Zachary is the editor of The Valdosta Daily Times, CNHI’s director of newsroom training and development and president emeritus of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation.