II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 481 

To secure the Federal voting rights of persons when released from 

incarceration. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 25, 2021 

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. KAINE, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. WARNER, Mr. 

BOOKER, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. WARREN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. SMITH, Ms. HIRONO, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. 

DURBIN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. COONS, Mr. CASEY, Mr. 

BROWN, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. MERKLEY, Ms. DUCKWORTH, 

and Mr. BENNET) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To secure the Federal voting rights of persons when released 

from incarceration. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Democracy Restoration 

5 Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 


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1 (1) The right to vote is the most basic constitu2 tive act of citizenship. Regaining the right to vote 

3 reintegrates individuals with criminal convictions 

4 into free society, helping to enhance public safety. 

5 (2) Article I, section 4, of the Constitution 

6 grants Congress ultimate supervisory power over 

7 Federal elections, an authority which has repeatedly 

8 been upheld by the United States Supreme Court. 

9 (3) Basic constitutional principles of fairness 

10 and equal protection require an equal opportunity 

11 for citizens of the United States to vote in Federal 

12 elections. The right to vote may not be abridged or 

13 denied by the United States or by any State on ac14 count of race, color, gender, or previous condition of 

15 servitude. The 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, and 

16 26th Amendments to the Constitution empower Con17 gress to enact measures to protect the right to vote 

18 in Federal elections. The 8th Amendment to the 

19 Constitution provides for no excessive bail to be re20 quired, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and 

21 unusual punishments inflicted. 

22 (4) There are 3 areas in which discrepancies in 

23 State laws regarding criminal convictions lead to un24 fairness in Federal elections— 


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1 (A) the lack of a uniform standard for vot2 ing in Federal elections leads to an unfair dis3 parity and unequal participation in Federal 

4 elections based solely on where a person lives; 

5 (B) laws governing the restoration of vot6 ing rights after a criminal conviction vary 

7 throughout the country and persons in some 

8 States can easily regain their voting rights 

9 while in other States persons effectively lose 

10 their right to vote permanently; and 

11 (C) State disenfranchisement laws dis12 proportionately impact racial and ethnic minori13 ties. 

14 (5) State disenfranchisement laws vary widely. 

15 Two States (Maine and Vermont) and the Common16 wealth of Puerto Rico do not disenfranchise individ17 uals with criminal convictions at all. In 2020, the 

18 District of Columbia re-enfranchised its citizens who 

19 are under the supervision of the Federal Bureau of 

20 Prisons. In 30 States, individuals with convictions 

21 may not vote while they are on parole and 28 of 

22 those States disenfranchise individuals on felony 

23 probation as well. In 11 States, a conviction can re24 sult in lifetime disenfranchisement. 


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1 (6) Several States deny the right to vote to in2 dividuals convicted of certain misdemeanors. 

3 (7) In 2020, an estimated 5,200,000 citizens of 

4 the United States, or about 1 in 44 adults in the 

5 United States, could not vote as a result of a felony 

6 conviction. Of the 5,200,000 citizens barred from 

7 voting then, only 24 percent were in prison. By con8 trast, 75 percent of persons disenfranchised then re9 sided in their communities while on probation or pa10 role or after having completed their sentences. Ap11 proximately 2,200,000 citizens who had completed 

12 their sentences were disenfranchised due to restric13 tive State laws. As of November 2018, the lifetime 

14 ban for persons with certain felony convictions was 

15 eliminated through a Florida ballot initiative. As a 

16 result, as many as 1,400,000 people are now eligible 

17 to have their voting rights restored. In 4 States— 

18 Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Tennessee—more 

19 than 7 percent of the total population is disenfran20 chised. 

21 (8) In those States that disenfranchise individ22 uals post-sentence, the right to vote can be regained 

23 in theory, but in practice this possibility is often 

24 granted in a non-uniform and potentially discrimina25 tory manner. Disenfranchised individuals sometimes 


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1 must either obtain a pardon or an order from the 

2 Governor or an action by the parole or pardon 

3 board, depending on the offense and State. Individ4 uals convicted of a Federal offense often have addi5 tional barriers to regaining voting rights. 

6 (9) State disenfranchisement laws dispropor7 tionately impact racial and ethnic minorities. In re8 cent years, African Americans have been imprisoned 

9 at over 5 times the rate of Whites. More than 6 per10 cent of the voting-age African-American population, 

11 or 1,800,000 African Americans, are disenfranchised 

12 due to a felony conviction. In 9 States—Alabama 

13 (16 percent), Arizona (13 percent), Florida (15 per14 cent), Kentucky (15 percent), Mississippi (16 per15 cent), South Dakota (14 percent), Tennessee (21 

16 percent), Virginia (16 percent), and Wyoming (36 

17 percent)—more than 1 in 8 African Americans are 

18 unable to vote because of a felony conviction, twice 

19 the national average for African Americans. 

20 (10) Latino citizens are also disproportionately 

21 disenfranchised based upon their disproportionate 

22 representation in the criminal justice system. In re23 cent years, Latinos have been imprisoned at 2.5 

24 times the rate of Whites. More than 2 percent of the 

25 voting-age Latino population, or 560,000 Latinos, 


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1 are disenfranchised due to a felony conviction. In 34 

2 States Latinos are disenfranchised at a higher rate 

3 than the general population. In 11 States 4 percent 

4 or more of Latino adults are disenfranchised due to 

5 a felony conviction (Alabama, 4 percent; Arizona, 7 

6 percent; Arkansas, 4 percent; Idaho, 4 percent; 

7 Iowa, 4 percent; Kentucky, 6 percent; Minnesota, 4 

8 percent; Mississippi, 5 percent; Nebraska, 6 percent; 

9 Tennessee, 11 percent, Wyoming, 4 percent), twice 

10 the national average for Latinos. 

11 (11) Disenfranchising citizens who have been 

12 convicted of a criminal offense and who are living 

13 and working in the community serves no compelling 

14 State interest and hinders their rehabilitation and 

15 reintegration into society. 

16 (12) State disenfranchisement laws can sup17 press electoral participation among eligible voters by 

18 discouraging voting among family and community 

19 members of disenfranchised persons. Future elec20 toral participation by the children of disenfranchised 

21 parents may be impacted as well. 

22 (13) The United States is one of the only West23 ern democracies that permits the permanent denial 

24 of voting rights for individuals with felony convic25 tions. 


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1 SEC. 3. RIGHTS OF CITIZENS. 

2 The right of an individual who is a citizen of the 

3 United States to vote in any election for Federal office 

4 shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has 

5 been convicted of a criminal offense unless such individual 

6 is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution 

7 or facility at the time of the election. 

8 SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT. 

9 (a) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

10 may, in a civil action, obtain such declaratory or injunctive 

11 relief as is necessary to remedy a violation of this Act. 

12 (b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person who is aggrieved 

14 by a violation of this Act may provide written notice 

15 of the violation to the chief election official of the 

16 State involved. 

17 (2) RELIEF.—Except as provided in paragraph 

18 (3), if the violation is not corrected within 90 days 

19 after receipt of a notice under paragraph (1), or 

20 within 20 days after receipt of the notice if the viola21 tion occurred within 120 days before the date of an 

22 election for Federal office, the aggrieved person 

23 may, in a civil action, obtain declaratory or injunc24 tive relief with respect to the violation. 

25 (3) EXCEPTION.—If the violation occurred 

26 within 30 days before the date of an election for 


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1 Federal office, the aggrieved person need not provide 

2 notice to the chief election official of the State under 

3 paragraph (1) before bringing a civil action to obtain 

4 declaratory or injunctive relief with respect to the 

5 violation. 

6 SEC. 5. NOTIFICATION OF RESTORATION OF VOTING 

7 RIGHTS. 

8 (a) STATE NOTIFICATION.— 

9 (1) NOTIFICATION.—On the date determined 

10 under paragraph (2), each State shall notify in writ11 ing any individual who has been convicted of a 

12 criminal offense under the law of that State that 

13 such individual has the right to vote in an election 

14 for Federal office pursuant to the Democracy Res15 toration Act of 2021 and may register to vote in any 

16 such election and provide such individuals with any 

17 materials that are necessary to register to vote in 

18 any such election. 

19 (2) DATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 

20 (A) FELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 

21 such an individual who has been convicted of a 

22 felony, the notification required under para23 graph (1) shall be given on the date on which 

24 the individual— 


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1 (i) is sentenced to serve only a term 

2 of probation; or 

3 (ii) is released from the custody of 

4 that State (other than to the custody of 

5 another State or the Federal Government 

6 to serve a term of imprisonment for a fel7 ony conviction). 

8 (B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION.—In the 

9 case of such an individual who has been con10 victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re11 quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 

12 the date on which such individual is sentenced 

13 by a State court. 

14 (b) FEDERAL NOTIFICATION.— 

15 (1) NOTIFICATION.—Any individual who has 

16 been convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 

17 law shall be notified in accordance with paragraph 

18 (2) that such individual has the right to vote in an 

19 election for Federal office pursuant to the Democ20 racy Restoration Act of 2021 and may register to 

21 vote in any such election. 

22 (2) DATE OF NOTIFICATION.— 

23 (A) FELONY CONVICTION.—In the case of 

24 such an individual who has been convicted of a 


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1 felony, the notification required under para2 graph (1) shall be given— 

3 (i) in the case of an individual who is 

4 sentenced to serve only a term of proba5 tion, by the Assistant Director for the Of6 fice of Probation and Pretrial Services of 

7 the Administrative Office of the United 

8 States Courts on the date on which the in9 dividual is sentenced; or 

10 (ii) in the case of any individual com11 mitted to the custody of the Bureau of 

12 Prisons, by the Director of the Bureau of 

13 Prisons, during the period beginning on 

14 the date that is 6 months before such indi15 vidual is released and ending on the date 

16 such individual is released from the cus17 tody of the Bureau of Prisons. 

18 (B) MISDEMEANOR CONVICTION.—In the 

19 case of such an individual who has been con20 victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re21 quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 

22 the date on which such individual is sentenced 

23 by a court established by an Act of Congress. 

24 SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 

25 For purposes of this Act: 


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1 (1) CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION OR FACIL2 ITY.—The term ‘‘correctional institution or facility’’ 

3 means any prison, penitentiary, jail, or other institu4 tion or facility for the confinement of individuals 

5 convicted of criminal offenses, whether publicly or 

6 privately operated, except that such term does not 

7 include any residential community treatment center 

8 (or similar public or private facility). 

9 (2) ELECTION.—The term ‘‘election’’ means— 

10 (A) a general, special, primary, or runoff 

11 election; 

12 (B) a convention or caucus of a political 

13 party held to nominate a candidate; 

14 (C) a primary election held for the selec15 tion of delegates to a national nominating con16 vention of a political party; or 

17 (D) a primary election held for the expres18 sion of a preference for the nomination of per19 sons for election to the office of President. 

20 (3) FEDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Federal of21 fice’’ means the office of President or Vice President 

22 of the United States, or of Senator or Representa23 tive in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 

24 the Congress of the United States. 


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1 (4) PROBATION.—The term ‘‘probation’’ means 

2 probation, imposed by a Federal, State, or local 

3 court, with or without a condition on the individual 

4 involved concerning— 

5 (A) the individual’s freedom of movement; 

6 (B) the payment of damages by the indi7 vidual; 

8 (C) periodic reporting by the individual to 

9 an officer of the court; or 

10 (D) supervision of the individual by an of11 ficer of the court. 

12 SEC. 7. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS. 

13 (a) STATE LAWS RELATING TO VOTING RIGHTS.— 

14 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit the 

15 States from enacting any State law which affords the right 

16 to vote in any election for Federal office on terms less 

17 restrictive than those established by this Act. 

18 (b) CERTAIN FEDERAL ACTS.—The rights and rem19 edies established by this Act are in addition to all other 

20 rights and remedies provided by law, and neither rights 

21 and remedies established by this Act shall supersede, re22 strict, or limit the application of the Voting Rights Act 

23 of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), the National Voter 

24 Registration Act (52 U.S.C. 20501), or the Help America 

25 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.). 


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1 SEC. 8. FEDERAL PRISON FUNDS. 

2 No State, unit of local government, or other person 

3 may receive or use, to construct or otherwise improve a 

4 prison, jail, or other place of incarceration, any Federal 

5 funds unless that State, unit of local government, or per6 son— 

7 (1) is in compliance with section 3; and 

8 (2) has in effect a program under which each 

9 individual incarcerated in that person’s jurisdiction 

10 who is a citizen of the United States is notified, 

11 upon release from such incarceration, of that indi12 vidual’s rights under section 3. 

13 SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

14 This Act shall apply to citizens of the United States 

15 voting in any election for Federal office held on or after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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