The U.S. Department of Justice has reversed an Obama-era decision that attempted to curtail the Ohio government's efforts to cleanup voting rolls.

Justice Department lawyers under the Trump administration determined the National Voter Registration Act does not prohibit rules such as those used in Ohio to remove thousands of inactive voters from the state's voting rolls, the Washington Times reported.

Ohio's policies involved sending notices to voters who did not vote during a two-year period. The notices inquired whether the voters might have moved, died, or otherwise become ineligible to vote. When the government did not receive a response, or individuals did not vote in the next four years, the voters could be removed from the state's voter rolls.

The Supreme Court announced in May it would hear the case to examine the legality of Ohio's policies. After a lower court ruled against the state, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the ruling and remanded the case for further proceedings.

In opposition to the Ohio government, the Justice Department under former President Barack Obama argued that before a state can start the confirmation process to remove a voter, "it must have reliable evidence that the voter has moved,"