IIB 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 9, 2019 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

AN ACT 

To amend the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to revise the 

criteria for determining which States and political subdivisions are subject to section 4 of the Act, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Voting Rights Ad3 vancement Act of 2019’’. 

4 SEC. 2. VIOLATIONS TRIGGERING AUTHORITY OF COURT 

5 TO RETAIN JURISDICTION. 

6 (a) TYPES OF VIOLATIONS.—Section 3(c) of the Vot7 ing Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10302(c)) is amended 

8 by striking ‘‘violations of the fourteenth or fifteenth 

9 amendment’’ and inserting ‘‘violations of the 14th or 15th 

10 Amendment, violations of this Act, or violations of any 

11 Federal law that prohibits discrimination in voting on the 

12 basis of race, color, or membership in a language minority 

13 group,’’. 

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3(a) of 

15 such Act (52 U.S.C. 10302(a)) is amended by striking 

16 ‘‘violations of the fourteenth or fifteenth amendment’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘violations of the 14th or 15th Amendment, vio18 lations of this Act, or violations of any Federal law that 

19 prohibits discrimination in voting on the basis of race, 

20 color, or membership in a language minority group,’’. 

21 SEC. 3. CRITERIA FOR COVERAGE OF STATES AND POLIT22 ICAL SUBDIVISIONS. 

23 (a) DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL

24 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO SECTION 4(a).— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 4(b) of the Voting 

2 Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10303(b)) is amend3 ed to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(b) DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL

5 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) EXISTENCE OF VOTING RIGHTS VIOLA7 TIONS DURING PREVIOUS 25 YEARS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) STATEWIDE APPLICATION.—Sub9 section (a) applies with respect to a State and 

10 all political subdivisions within the State during 

11 a calendar year if— 

12 ‘‘(i) fifteen or more voting rights vio13 lations occurred in the State during the 

14 previous 25 calendar years; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) ten or more voting rights viola16 tions occurred in the State during the pre17 vious 25 calendar years, at least one of 

18 which was committed by the State itself 

19 (as opposed to a political subdivision with20 in the State). 

21 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION TO SPECIFIC POLITICAL

22 SUBDIVISIONS.—Subsection (a) applies with re23 spect to a political subdivision as a separate 

24 unit during a calendar year if three or more 


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1 voting rights violations occurred in the subdivi2 sion during the previous 25 calendar years. 

3 ‘‘(2) PERIOD OF APPLICATION.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

5 subparagraph (B), if, pursuant to paragraph 

6 (1), subsection (a) applies with respect to a 

7 State or political subdivision during a calendar 

8 year, subsection (a) shall apply with respect to 

9 such State or political subdivision for the pe10 riod— 

11 ‘‘(i) that begins on January 1 of the 

12 year in which subsection (a) applies; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) that ends on the date which is 10 

14 years after the date described in clause (i). 

15 ‘‘(B) NO FURTHER APPLICATION AFTER

16 DECLARATORY JUDGMENT.— 

17 ‘‘(i) STATES.—If a State obtains a de18 claratory judgment under subsection (a), 

19 and the judgment remains in effect, sub20 section (a) shall no longer apply to such 

21 State pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) unless, 

22 after the issuance of the declaratory judg23 ment, paragraph (1)(A) applies to the 

24 State solely on the basis of voting rights 


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1 violations occurring after the issuance of 

2 the declaratory judgment. 

3 ‘‘(ii) POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS.—If a 

4 political subdivision obtains a declaratory 

5 judgment under subsection (a), and the 

6 judgment remains in effect, subsection (a) 

7 shall no longer apply to such political sub8 division pursuant to paragraph (1), includ9 ing pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) (relating 

10 to the statewide application of subsection 

11 (a)), unless, after the issuance of the de12 claratory judgment, paragraph (1)(B) ap13 plies to the political subdivision solely on 

14 the basis of voting rights violations occur15 ring after the issuance of the declaratory 

16 judgment. 

17 ‘‘(3) DETERMINATION OF VOTING RIGHTS VIO18 LATION.—For purposes of paragraph (1), a voting 

19 rights violation occurred in a State or political sub20 division if any of the following applies: 

21 ‘‘(A) FINAL JUDGMENT; VIOLATION OF

22 THE 14TH OR 15TH AMENDMENT.—In a final 

23 judgment (which has not been reversed on ap24 peal), any court of the United States has deter25 mined that a denial or abridgement of the right 


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1 of any citizen of the United States to vote on 

2 account of race, color, or membership in a lan3 guage minority group, in violation of the 14th 

4 or 15th Amendment, occurred anywhere within 

5 the State or subdivision. 

6 ‘‘(B) FINAL JUDGMENT; VIOLATIONS OF

7 THIS ACT.—In a final judgment (which has not 

8 been reversed on appeal), any court of the 

9 United States has determined that a voting 

10 qualification or prerequisite to voting or stand11 ard, practice, or procedure with respect to vot12 ing was imposed or applied or would have been 

13 imposed or applied anywhere within the State 

14 or subdivision in a manner that resulted or 

15 would have resulted in a denial or abridgement 

16 of the right of any citizen of the United States 

17 to vote on account of race, color, or membership 

18 in a language minority group, in violation of 

19 subsection (e) or (f), or section 2 or 203 of this 

20 Act. 

21 ‘‘(C) FINAL JUDGMENT; DENIAL OF DE22 CLARATORY JUDGMENT.—In a final judgment 

23 (which has not been reversed on appeal), any 

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1 tory judgment under section 3(c) or section 5, 

2 and thereby prevented a voting qualification or 

3 prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or 

4 procedure with respect to voting from being en5 forced anywhere within the State or subdivision. 

6 ‘‘(D) OBJECTION BY THE ATTORNEY GEN7 ERAL.—The Attorney General has interposed 

8 an objection under section 3(c) or section 5 

9 (and the objection has not been overturned by 

10 a final judgment of a court or withdrawn by the 

11 Attorney General), and thereby prevented a vot12 ing qualification or prerequisite to voting or 

13 standard, practice, or procedure with respect to 

14 voting from being enforced anywhere within the 

15 State or subdivision. 

16 ‘‘(E) CONSENT DECREE, SETTLEMENT, OR

17 OTHER AGREEMENT.—A consent decree, settle18 ment, or other agreement was entered into, 

19 which resulted in the alteration or abandonment 

20 of a voting practice anywhere in the territory of 

21 such State that was challenged on the ground 

22 that the practice denied or abridged the right of 

23 any citizen of the United States to vote on ac24 count of race, color, or membership in a lan25 guage minority group in violation of subsection 


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1 (e) or (f), or section 2 or 203 of this Act, or 

2 the 14th or 15th Amendment. 

3 ‘‘(4) TIMING OF DETERMINATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATIONS OF VOTING RIGHTS

5 VIOLATIONS.—As early as practicable during 

6 each calendar year, the Attorney General shall 

7 make the determinations required by this sub8 section, including updating the list of voting 

9 rights violations occurring in each State and po10 litical subdivision for the previous calendar 

11 year. 

12 ‘‘(B) EFFECTIVE UPON PUBLICATION IN

13 FEDERAL REGISTER.—A determination or cer14 tification of the Attorney General under this 

15 section or under section 8 or 13 shall be effec16 tive upon publication in the Federal Register.’’. 

17 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 4(a) 

18 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10303(a)) is amended— 

19 (A) in paragraph (1), in the first sentence 

20 of the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by 

21 striking ‘‘any State with respect to which’’ and 

22 all that follows through ‘‘unless’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘any State to which this subsection applies dur24 ing a calendar year pursuant to determinations 

25 made under subsection (b), or in any political 


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1 subdivision of such State (as such subdivision 

2 existed on the date such determinations were 

3 made with respect to such State), though such 

4 determinations were not made with respect to 

5 such subdivision as a separate unit, or in any 

6 political subdivision with respect to which this 

7 subsection applies during a calendar year pur8 suant to determinations made with respect to 

9 such subdivision as a separate unit under sub10 section (b), unless’’; 

11 (B) in paragraph (1) in the matter pre12 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking the second 

13 sentence; 

14 (C) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘(in 

15 the case of a State or subdivision seeking a de16 claratory judgment under the second sentence 

17 of this subsection)’’; 

18 (D) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘(in 

19 the case of a State or subdivision seeking a de20 claratory judgment under the second sentence 

21 of this subsection)’’; 

22 (E) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘(in the 

23 case of a State or subdivision seeking a declara24 tory judgment under the second sentence of this 

25 subsection)’’; 


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1 (F) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘(in the 

2 case of a State or subdivision which sought a 

3 declaratory judgment under the second sentence 

4 of this subsection)’’; 

5 (G) by striking paragraphs (7) and (8); 

6 and 

7 (H) by redesignating paragraph (9) as 

8 paragraph (7). 

9 (b) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF MEMBERS OF

10 LANGUAGE MINORITY GROUPS.—Section 4(a)(1) of such 

11 Act (52 U.S.C. 10303(a)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘race 

12 or color,’’ and inserting ‘‘race, color, or in contravention 

13 of the guarantees of subsection (f)(2),’’. 

14 SEC. 4. DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL SUB15 DIVISIONS SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE FOR 

16 COVERED PRACTICES. 

17 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et 

18 seq.) is further amended by inserting after section 4 the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 4A. DETERMINATION OF STATES AND POLITICAL 

21 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE 

22 FOR COVERED PRACTICES. 

23 ‘‘(a) PRACTICE-BASED PRECLEARANCE.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State and each polit25 ical subdivision shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) identify any newly enacted or adopted 

2 law, regulation, or policy that includes a voting 

3 qualification or prerequisite to voting, or a 

4 standard, practice, or procedure with respect to 

5 voting, that is a covered practice described in 

6 subsection (b); and 

7 ‘‘(B) ensure that no such covered practice 

8 is implemented unless or until the State or po9 litical subdivision, as the case may be, complies 

10 with subsection (c). 

11 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATIONS OF CHARACTERISTICS

12 OF VOTING-AGE POPULATION.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As early as prac14 ticable during each calendar year, the Attorney 

15 General, in consultation with the Director of 

16 the Bureau of the Census and the heads of 

17 other relevant offices of the government, shall 

18 make the determinations required by this sec19 tion regarding voting-age populations and the 

20 characteristics of such populations, and shall 

21 publish a list of the States and political subdivi22 sions to which a voting-age population char23 acteristic described in subsection (b) applies. 

24 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REG25 ISTER.—A determination or certification of the 


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1 Attorney General under this paragraph shall be 

2 effective upon publication in the Federal Reg3 ister. 

4 ‘‘(b) COVERED PRACTICES.—To assure that the right 

5 of citizens of the United States to vote is not denied or 

6 abridged on account of race, color, or membership in a 

7 language minority group as a result of the implementation 

8 of certain qualifications or prerequisites to voting, or 

9 standards, practices, or procedures with respect to voting 

10 newly adopted in a State or political subdivision, the fol11 lowing shall be covered practices subject to the require12 ments described in subsection (a): 

13 ‘‘(1) CHANGES TO METHOD OF ELECTION.— 

14 Any change to the method of election— 

15 ‘‘(A) to add seats elected at-large in a 

16 State or political subdivision where— 

17 ‘‘(i) two or more racial groups or lan18 guage minority groups each represent 20 

19 percent or more of the political subdivi20 sion’s voting-age population; or 

21 ‘‘(ii) a single language minority group 

22 represents 20 percent or more of the vot23 ing-age population on Indian lands located 

24 in whole or in part in the political subdivi25 sion; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) to convert one or more seats elected 

2 from a single-member district to one or more 

3 at-large seats or seats from a multi-member 

4 district in a State or political subdivision 

5 where— 

6 ‘‘(i) two or more racial groups or lan7 guage minority groups each represent 20 

8 percent or more of the political subdivi9 sion’s voting-age population; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) a single language minority group 

11 represents 20 percent or more of the vot12 ing-age population on Indian lands located 

13 in whole or in part in the political subdivi14 sion. 

15 ‘‘(2) CHANGES TO JURISDICTION BOUND16 ARIES.—Any change or series of changes within a 

17 year to the boundaries of a jurisdiction that reduces 

18 by 3 or more percentage points the proportion of the 

19 jurisdiction’s voting-age population that is comprised 

20 of members of a single racial group or language mi21 nority group in a State or political subdivision 

22 where— 

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1 cent or more of the political subdivision’s vot2 ing-age population; or 

3 ‘‘(B) a single language minority group rep4 resents 20 percent or more of the voting-age 

5 population on Indian lands located in whole or 

6 in part in the political subdivision. 

7 ‘‘(3) CHANGES THROUGH REDISTRICTING.— 

8 Any change to the boundaries of election districts in 

9 a State or political subdivision where any racial 

10 group or language minority group experiences a pop11 ulation increase, over the preceding decade (as cal12 culated by the Bureau of the Census under the most 

13 recent decennial census), of at least— 

14 ‘‘(A) 10,000; or 

15 ‘‘(B) 20 percent of voting-age population 

16 of the State or political subdivision, as the case 

17 may be. 

18 ‘‘(4) CHANGES IN DOCUMENTATION OR QUALI19 FICATIONS TO VOTE.—Any change to requirements 

20 for documentation or proof of identity to vote such 

21 that the requirements will exceed or be more strin22 gent than the requirements for voting that are de23 scribed in section 303(b) of the Help America Vote 

24 Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21083(b)) or any change to 

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1 tity to register to vote that will exceed or be more 

2 stringent than such requirements under State law on 

3 the day before the date of enactment of the Voting 

4 Rights Advancement Act of 2019. 

5 ‘‘(5) CHANGES TO MULTILINGUAL VOTING MA6 TERIALS.—Any change that reduces multilingual 

7 voting materials or alters the manner in which such 

8 materials are provided or distributed, where no simi9 lar reduction or alteration occurs in materials pro10 vided in English for such election. 

11 ‘‘(6) CHANGES THAT REDUCE, CONSOLIDATE, 

12 OR RELOCATE VOTING LOCATIONS, OR REDUCE VOT13 ING OPPORTUNITIES.—Any change that reduces, 

14 consolidates, or relocates voting locations, including 

15 early, absentee, and election-day voting locations, or 

16 reduces days or hours of in person voting on any 

17 Sunday during a period occurring prior to the date 

18 of an election during which voters may cast ballots 

19 in such election— 

20 ‘‘(A) in one or more census tracts wherein 

21 two or more language minority groups or racial 

22 groups each represent 20 percent or more of 

23 the voting-age population of the political sub24 division; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) on Indian lands wherein at least 20 

2 percent of the voting-age population belongs to 

3 a single language minority group. 

4 ‘‘(7) NEW LIST MAINTENANCE PROCESS.—Any 

5 change to the maintenance of voter registration lists 

6 that adds a new basis for removal from the list of 

7 active registered voters or that puts in place a new 

8 process for removing a name from the list of active 

9 registered voters— 

10 ‘‘(A) in the case of a political subdivision 

11 imposing such change if— 

12 ‘‘(i) two or more racial groups or lan13 guage minority groups each represent 20 

14 percent or more of the voting-age popu15 lation of the political subdivision; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) a single language minority group 

17 represents 20 percent or more of the vot18 ing-age population on Indian lands located 

19 in whole or in part in the political subdivi20 sion; or 

21 ‘‘(B) in the case of a State imposing such 

22 change, if two or more racial groups or lan23 guage minority groups each represent 20 per24 cent or more of the voting-age population of— 

25 ‘‘(i) the State; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a political subdivision in the 

2 State, except that the requirements under 

3 subsections (a) and (c) shall apply only 

4 with respect to each such political subdivi5 sion. 

6 ‘‘(c) PRECLEARANCE.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever a State or polit8 ical subdivision with respect to which the require9 ments set forth in subsection (a) are in effect shall 

10 enact, adopt, or seek to implement any covered prac11 tice described under subsection (b), such State or 

12 subdivision may institute an action in the United 

13 States District Court for the District of Columbia 

14 for a declaratory judgment that such covered prac15 tice neither has the purpose nor will have the effect 

16 of denying or abridging the right to vote on account 

17 of race, color, or membership in a language minority 

18 group, and unless and until the court enters such 

19 judgment such covered practice shall not be imple20 mented. Notwithstanding the previous sentence, such 

21 covered practice may be implemented without such 

22 proceeding if the covered practice has been sub23 mitted by the chief legal officer or other appropriate 

24 official of such State or subdivision to the Attorney 

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1 posed an objection within 60 days after such submis2 sion, or upon good cause shown, to facilitate an ex3 pedited approval within 60 days after such submis4 sion, the Attorney General has affirmatively indi5 cated that such objection will not be made. Neither 

6 an affirmative indication by the Attorney General 

7 that no objection will be made, nor the Attorney 

8 General’s failure to object, nor a declaratory judg9 ment entered under this section shall bar a subse10 quent action to enjoin implementation of such cov11 ered practice. In the event the Attorney General af12 firmatively indicates that no objection will be made 

13 within the 60-day period following receipt of a sub14 mission, the Attorney General may reserve the right 

15 to reexamine the submission if additional informa16 tion comes to the Attorney General’s attention dur17 ing the remainder of the 60-day period which would 

18 otherwise require objection in accordance with this 

19 section. Any action under this section shall be heard 

20 and determined by a court of three judges in accord21 ance with the provisions of section 2284 of title 28, 

22 United States Code, and any appeal shall lie to the 

23 Supreme Court. 

24 ‘‘(2) DENYING OR ABRIDGING THE RIGHT TO

25 VOTE.—Any covered practice described in subsection 


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1 (b) that has the purpose of or will have the effect 

2 of diminishing the ability of any citizens of the 

3 United States on account of race, color, or member4 ship in a language minority group, to elect their pre5 ferred candidates of choice denies or abridges the 

6 right to vote within the meaning of paragraph (1) of 

7 this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(3) PURPOSE DEFINED.—The term ‘purpose’ 

9 in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection shall in10 clude any discriminatory purpose. 

11 ‘‘(4) PURPOSE OF PARAGRAPH (2).—The pur12 pose of paragraph (2) of this subsection is to protect 

13 the ability of such citizens to elect their preferred 

14 candidates of choice. 

15 ‘‘(d) ENFORCEMENT.—The Attorney General or any 

16 aggrieved citizen may file an action in a Federal district 

17 court to compel any State or political subdivision to satisfy 

18 the obligations set forth in this section. Such actions shall 

19 be heard and determined by a court of three judges under 

20 section 2284 of title 28, United States Code. In any such 

21 action, the court shall provide as a remedy that any voting 

22 qualification or prerequisite to voting, or standard, prac23 tice, or procedure with respect to voting, that is the sub24 ject of the action under this subsection be enjoined unless 

25 the court determines that— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the voting qualification or prerequisite to 

2 voting, or standard, practice, or procedure with re3 spect to voting, is not a covered practice described 

4 in subsection (b); or 

5 ‘‘(2) the State or political subdivision has com6 plied with subsection (c) with respect to the covered 

7 practice at issue. 

8 ‘‘(e) COUNTING OF RACIAL GROUPS AND LANGUAGE

9 MINORITY GROUPS.—For purposes of this section, the cal10 culation of the population of a racial group or a language 

11 minority group shall be carried out using the methodology 

12 in the guidance promulgated in the Federal Register on 

13 February 9, 2011 (76 Fed. Reg. 7470). 

14 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULE.—For purposes of determina15 tions under this section, any data provided by the Bureau 

16 of the Census, whether based on estimation from sample 

17 or actual enumeration, shall not be subject to challenge 

18 or review in any court. 

19 ‘‘(g) MULTILINGUAL VOTING MATERIALS.—In this 

20 section, the term ‘multilingual voting materials’ means 

21 registration or voting notices, forms, instructions, assist22 ance, or other materials or information relating to the 

23 electoral process, including ballots, provided in the lan24 guage or languages of one or more language minority 

25 groups.’’. 


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1 SEC. 5. PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY TO ENFORCE THE 

2 VOTING RIGHTS ACT. 

3 (a) TRANSPARENCY.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Voting Rights Act of 

5 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) is amended by in6 serting after section 5 the following new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 6. TRANSPARENCY REGARDING CHANGES TO PRO8 TECT VOTING RIGHTS. 

9 ‘‘(a) NOTICE OF ENACTED CHANGES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) NOTICE OF CHANGES.—If a State or polit11 ical subdivision makes any change in any pre12 requisite to voting or standard, practice, or proce13 dure with respect to voting in any election for Fed14 eral office that will result in the prerequisite, stand15 ard, practice, or procedure being different from that 

16 which was in effect as of 180 days before the date 

17 of the election for Federal office, the State or polit18 ical subdivision shall provide reasonable public notice 

19 in such State or political subdivision and on the 

20 Internet, of a concise description of the change, in21 cluding the difference between the changed pre22 requisite, standard, practice, or procedure and the 

23 prerequisite, standard, practice, or procedure which 

24 was previously in effect. The public notice described 

25 in this paragraph, in such State or political subdivi26 sion and on the Internet, shall be in a format that 


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1 is reasonably convenient and accessible to voters 

2 with disabilities, including voters who have low vi3 sion or are blind. 

4 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE FOR NOTICE.—A State or polit5 ical subdivision shall provide the public notice re6 quired under paragraph (1) not later than 48 hours 

7 after making the change involved. 

8 ‘‘(b) TRANSPARENCY REGARDING POLLING PLACE

9 RESOURCES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to identify any 

11 changes that may impact the right to vote of any 

12 person, prior to the 30th day before the date of an 

13 election for Federal office, each State or political 

14 subdivision with responsibility for allocating reg15 istered voters, voting machines, and official poll 

16 workers to particular precincts and polling places 

17 shall provide reasonable public notice in such State 

18 or political subdivision and on the Internet, of the 

19 information described in paragraph (2) for precincts 

20 and polling places within such State or political sub21 division. The public notice described in this para22 graph, in such State or political subdivision and on 

23 the Internet, shall be in a format that is reasonably 

24 convenient and accessible to voters with disabilities 

25 including voters who have low vision or are blind. 


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1 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The informa2 tion described in this paragraph with respect to a 

3 precinct or polling place is each of the following: 

4 ‘‘(A) The name or number. 

5 ‘‘(B) In the case of a polling place, the lo6 cation, including the street address, and wheth7 er such polling place is accessible to persons 

8 with disabilities. 

9 ‘‘(C) The voting-age population of the area 

10 served by the precinct or polling place, broken 

11 down by demographic group if such breakdown 

12 is reasonably available to such State or political 

13 subdivision. 

14 ‘‘(D) The number of registered voters as15 signed to the precinct or polling place, broken 

16 down by demographic group if such breakdown 

17 is reasonably available to such State or political 

18 subdivision. 

19 ‘‘(E) The number of voting machines as20 signed, including the number of voting ma21 chines accessible to voters with disabilities, in22 cluding voters who have low vision or are blind. 

23 ‘‘(F) The number of official paid poll 

24 workers assigned. 


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1 ‘‘(G) The number of official volunteer poll 

2 workers assigned. 

3 ‘‘(H) In the case of a polling place, the 

4 dates and hours of operation. 

5 ‘‘(3) UPDATES IN INFORMATION REPORTED.— 

6 If a State or political subdivision makes any change 

7 in any of the information described in paragraph 

8 (2), the State or political subdivision shall provide 

9 reasonable public notice in such State or political 

10 subdivision and on the Internet, of the change in the 

11 information not later than 48 hours after the change 

12 occurs or, if the change occurs fewer than 48 hours 

13 before the date of the election for Federal office, as 

14 soon as practicable after the change occurs. The 

15 public notice described in this paragraph in such 

16 State or political subdivision and on the Internet 

17 shall be in a format that is reasonably convenient 

18 and accessible to voters with disabilities including 

19 voters who have low vision or are blind. 

20 ‘‘(c) TRANSPARENCY OF CHANGES RELATING TO DE21 MOGRAPHICS AND ELECTORAL DISTRICTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) REQUIRING PUBLIC NOTICE OF

23 CHANGES.—Not later than 10 days after making 

24 any change in the constituency that will participate 

25 in an election for Federal, State, or local office or 


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1 the boundaries of a voting unit or electoral district 

2 in an election for Federal, State, or local office (in3 cluding through redistricting, reapportionment, 

4 changing from at-large elections to district-based 

5 elections, or changing from district-based elections 

6 to at-large elections), a State or political subdivision 

7 shall provide reasonable public notice in such State 

8 or political subdivision and on the Internet, of the 

9 demographic and electoral data described in para10 graph (3) for each of the geographic areas described 

11 in paragraph (2). 

12 ‘‘(2) GEOGRAPHIC AREAS DESCRIBED.—The ge13 ographic areas described in this paragraph are as 

14 follows: 

15 ‘‘(A) The State as a whole, if the change 

16 applies statewide, or the political subdivision as 

17 a whole, if the change applies across the entire 

18 political subdivision. 

19 ‘‘(B) If the change includes a plan to re20 place or eliminate voting units or electoral dis21 tricts, each voting unit or electoral district that 

22 will be replaced or eliminated. 

23 ‘‘(C) If the change includes a plan to es24 tablish new voting units or electoral districts, 

25 each such new voting unit or electoral district. 


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1 ‘‘(3) DEMOGRAPHIC AND ELECTORAL DATA.— 

2 The demographic and electoral data described in this 

3 paragraph with respect to a geographic area de4 scribed in paragraph (2) are each of the following: 

5 ‘‘(A) The voting-age population, broken 

6 down by demographic group. 

7 ‘‘(B) If it is reasonably available to the 

8 State or political subdivision involved, an esti9 mate of the population of the area which con10 sists of citizens of the United States who are 18 

11 years of age or older, broken down by demo12 graphic group. 

13 ‘‘(C) The number of registered voters, bro14 ken down by demographic group if such break15 down is reasonably available to the State or po16 litical subdivision involved. 

17 ‘‘(D)(i) If the change applies to a State, 

18 the actual number of votes, or (if it is not rea19 sonably practicable for the State to ascertain 

20 the actual number of votes) the estimated num21 ber of votes received by each candidate in each 

22 statewide election held during the 5-year period 

23 which ends on the date the change involved is 

24 made; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) if the change applies to only one polit2 ical subdivision, the actual number of votes, or 

3 (if it is not reasonably practicable for the polit4 ical subdivision to ascertain the actual number 

5 of votes) in each subdivision-wide election held 

6 during the 5-year period which ends on the date 

7 the change involved is made. 

8 ‘‘(4) VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE BY SMALLER JU9 RISDICTIONS.—Compliance with this subsection shall 

10 be voluntary for a political subdivision of a State un11 less the subdivision is one of the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) A county or parish. 

13 ‘‘(B) A municipality with a population 

14 greater than 10,000, as determined by the Bu15 reau of the Census under the most recent de16 cennial census. 

17 ‘‘(C) A school district with a population 

18 greater than 10,000, as determined by the Bu19 reau of the Census under the most recent de20 cennial census. For purposes of this subpara21 graph, the term ‘school district’ means the geo22 graphic area under the jurisdiction of a local 

23 educational agency (as defined in section 9101 

24 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

25 Act of 1965). 


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1 ‘‘(d) RULES REGARDING FORMAT OF INFORMA2 TION.—The Attorney General may issue rules specifying 

3 a reasonably convenient and accessible format that States 

4 and political subdivisions shall use to provide public notice 

5 of information under this section. 

6 ‘‘(e) NO DENIAL OF RIGHT TO VOTE.—The right to 

7 vote of any person shall not be denied or abridged because 

8 the person failed to comply with any change made by a 

9 State or political subdivision to a voting qualification, 

10 standard, practice, or procedure if the State or political 

11 subdivision involved did not meet the applicable require12 ments of this section with respect to the change. 

13 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

14 ‘‘(1) the term ‘demographic group’ means each 

15 group which section 2 protects from the denial or 

16 abridgement of the right to vote on account of race 

17 or color, or in contravention of the guarantees set 

18 forth in section 4(f)(2); 

19 ‘‘(2) the term ‘election for Federal office’ means 

20 any general, special, primary, or runoff election held 

21 solely or in part for the purpose of electing any can22 didate for the office of President, Vice President, 

23 Presidential elector, Senator, Member of the House 

24 of Representatives, or Delegate or Resident Commis25 sioner to the Congress; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) the term ‘persons with disabilities’, means 

2 individuals with a disability, as defined in section 3 

3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.’’. 

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3(a) 

5 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10302(a)) is amended by 

6 striking ‘‘in accordance with section 6’’. 

7 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

8 subsection (a)(1) shall apply with respect to changes which 

9 are made on or after the expiration of the 60-day period 

10 which begins on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO ASSIGN OBSERVERS. 

12 (a) CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY IN POLITICAL

13 SUBDIVISIONS SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE.—Section 

14 8(a)(2)(B) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

15 10305(a)(2)(B)) is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(B) in the Attorney General’s judgment, 

17 the assignment of observers is otherwise nec18 essary to enforce the guarantees of the 14th or 

19 15th Amendment or any provision of this Act 

20 or any other Federal law protecting the right of 

21 citizens of the United States to vote; or’’. 

22 (b) ASSIGNMENT OF OBSERVERS TO ENFORCE BI23 LINGUAL ELECTION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 8(a) of 

24 such Act (52 U.S.C. 10305(a)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 

2 (1); 

3 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(3) the Attorney General certifies with respect 

6 to a political subdivision that— 

7 ‘‘(A) the Attorney General has received 

8 written meritorious complaints from residents, 

9 elected officials, or civic participation organiza10 tions that efforts to violate section 203 are like11 ly to occur; or 

12 ‘‘(B) in the Attorney General’s judgment, 

13 the assignment of observers is necessary to en14 force the guarantees of section 203;’’; and 

15 (3) by moving the margin for the continuation 

16 text following paragraph (3), as added by paragraph 

17 (2) of this subsection, 2 ems to the left. 

18 SEC. 7. PRELIMINARY INJUNCTIVE RELIEF. 

19 (a) CLARIFICATION OF SCOPE AND PERSONS AU20 THORIZED TO SEEK RELIEF.—Section 12(d) of the Vot21 ing Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10308(d)) is amend22 ed— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘section 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, 

24 or subsection (b) of this section’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

25 14th or 15th Amendment, this Act, or any Federal 


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1 voting rights law that prohibits discrimination on 

2 the basis of race, color, or membership in a language 

3 minority group’’; and 

4 (2) by striking ‘‘the Attorney General may in5 stitute for the United States, or in the name of the 

6 United States,’’ and inserting ‘‘the aggrieved person 

7 or (in the name of the United States) the Attorney 

8 General may institute’’. 

9 (b) GROUNDS FOR GRANTING RELIEF.—Section 

10 12(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10308(d)) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘(d) Whenever any person’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘(d)(1) Whenever any person’’; 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘(1) to permit’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘(A) to permit’’; 

15 (3) by striking ‘‘(2) to count’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘(B) to count’’; and 

17 (4) by adding at the end the following new 

18 paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(2)(A) In any action for preliminary relief described 

20 in this subsection, the court shall grant the relief if the 

21 court determines that the complainant has raised a serious 

22 question whether the challenged voting qualification or 

23 prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or procedure 

24 violates this Act or the Constitution and, on balance, the 

25 hardship imposed upon the defendant by the grant of the 


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1 relief will be less than the hardship which would be im2 posed upon the plaintiff if the relief were not granted. In 

3 balancing the harms, the court shall give due weight to 

4 the fundamental right to cast an effective ballot. 

5 ‘‘(B) In making its determination under this para6 graph with respect to a change in any voting qualification, 

7 prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure 

8 with respect to voting, the court shall consider all relevant 

9 factors and give due weight to the following factors, if they 

10 are present: 

11 ‘‘(i) Whether the qualification, prerequisite, 

12 standard, practice, or procedure in effect prior to the 

13 change was adopted as a remedy for a Federal court 

14 judgment, consent decree, or admission regarding— 

15 ‘‘(I) discrimination on the basis of race or 

16 color in violation of the 14th or 15th Amend17 ment; 

18 ‘‘(II) a violation of this Act; or 

19 ‘‘(III) voting discrimination on the basis of 

20 race, color, or membership in a language minor21 ity group in violation of any other Federal or 

22 State law. 

23 ‘‘(ii) Whether the qualification, prerequisite, 

24 standard, practice, or procedure in effect prior to the 


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1 change served as a ground for the dismissal or set2 tlement of a claim alleging— 

3 ‘‘(I) discrimination on the basis of race or 

4 color in violation of the 14th or 15th Amend5 ment; 

6 ‘‘(II) a violation of this Act; or 

7 ‘‘(III) voting discrimination on the basis of 

8 race, color, or membership in a language minor9 ity group in violation of any other Federal or 

10 State law. 

11 ‘‘(iii) Whether the change was adopted fewer 

12 than 180 days before the date of the election with 

13 respect to which the change is to take effect. 

14 ‘‘(iv) Whether the defendant has failed to pro15 vide timely or complete notice of the adoption of the 

16 change as required by applicable Federal or State 

17 law.’’. 

18 (c) GROUNDS FOR STAY OR INTERLOCUTORY AP19 PEAL.—Section 12(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10308(d)) 

20 is further amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(3) A jurisdiction’s inability to enforce its voting or 

22 election laws, regulations, policies, or redistricting plans, 

23 standing alone, shall not be deemed to constitute irrep24 arable harm to the public interest or to the interests of 

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1 tion or any Federal law that prohibits discrimination on 

2 the basis of race, color, or membership in a language mi3 nority group in the voting process, for the purposes of de4 termining whether a stay of a court’s order or an inter5 locutory appeal under section 1253 of title 28, United 

6 States Code, is warranted.’’. 

7 SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS. 

8 Title I of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

9 10301) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 21. DEFINITIONS. 

11 ‘‘In this Act: 

12 ‘‘(1) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ has the mean13 ing given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self14 Determination and Education Assistance Act. 

15 ‘‘(2) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘Indian lands’ 

16 means— 

17 ‘‘(A) any Indian country of an Indian 

18 tribe, as such term is defined in section 1151 

19 of title 18, United States Code; 

20 ‘‘(B) any land in Alaska that is owned, 

21 pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settle22 ment Act, by an Indian tribe that is a Native 

23 village (as such term is defined in section 3 of 

24 such Act), or by a Village Corporation that is 


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1 associated with the Indian tribe (as such term 

2 is defined in section 3 of such Act); 

3 ‘‘(C) any land on which the seat of govern4 ment of the Indian tribe is located; and 

5 ‘‘(D) any land that is part or all of a tribal 

6 designated statistical area associated with the 

7 Indian tribe, or is part or all of an Alaska Na8 tive village statistical area associated with the 

9 tribe, as defined by the Bureau of the Census 

10 for the purposes of the most recent decennial 

11 census. 

12 ‘‘(3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian tribe’ or 

13 ‘tribe’ has the meaning given the term ‘Indian tribe’ 

14 in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 

15 Education Assistance Act. 

16 ‘‘(4) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘Tribal 

17 Government’ means the recognized governing body 

18 of an Indian Tribe. 

19 ‘‘(5) VOTING-AGE POPULATION.—The term 

20 ‘voting-age population’ means the numerical size of 

21 the population within a State, within a political sub22 division, or within a political subdivision that con23 tains Indian lands, as the case may be, that consists 

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1 reau of the Census under the most recent decennial 

2 census.’’. 

3 SEC. 9. ATTORNEYS’ FEES. 

4 Section 14(c) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 

5 U.S.C. 10310(c)) is amended by adding at the end the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(4) The term ‘prevailing party’ means a party to an 

8 action that receives at least some of the benefit sought 

9 by such action, states a colorable claim, and can establish 

10 that the action was a significant cause of a change to the 

11 status quo.’’. 

12 SEC. 10. OTHER TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND13 MENTS. 

14 (a) ACTIONS COVERED UNDER SECTION 3.—Section 

15 3(c) of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 

16 10302(c)) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘any proceeding instituted by 

18 the Attorney General or an aggrieved person under 

19 any statute to enforce’’ and inserting ‘‘any action 

20 under any statute in which a party (including the 

21 Attorney General) seeks to enforce’’; and 

22 (2) by striking ‘‘at the time the proceeding was 

23 commenced’’ and inserting ‘‘at the time the action 

24 was commenced’’. 


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1 (b) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF MEMBERS OF

2 LANGUAGE MINORITY GROUPS.—Section 4(f) of such Act 

3 (52 U.S.C. 10303(f)) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking the second 

5 sentence; and 

6 (2) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4). 

7 (c) PERIOD DURING WHICH CHANGES IN VOTING

8 PRACTICES ARE SUBJECT TO PRECLEARANCE UNDER

9 SECTION 5.—Section 5 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 10304) 

10 is amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘based upon 

12 determinations made under the first sentence of sec13 tion 4(b) are in effect’’ and inserting ‘‘are in effect 

14 during a calendar year’’; 

15 (2) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘November 1, 

16 1964’’ and all that follows through ‘‘November 1, 

17 1972’’ and inserting ‘‘the applicable date of cov18 erage’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub20 section: 

21 ‘‘(e) The term ‘applicable date of coverage’ means, 

22 with respect to a State or political subdivision— 

23 ‘‘(1) June 25, 2013, if the most recent deter24 mination for such State or subdivision under section 

25 4(b) was made on or before December 31, 2019; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) the date on which the most recent deter2 mination for such State or subdivision under section 

3 4(b) was made, if such determination was made 

4 after December 31, 2019.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives December 6, 

2019. 

Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 

Clerk. 


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