Union Calendar No. 2

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2

[Report No. 103–9]

A BILL

To establish national voter registration procedures

for Federal elections, and for other purposes.

FEBRUARY 2, 1993

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee

dered to be printedof the Whole House on the State of the Union, and or-
IB

Union Calendar No. 2

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2

[Report No. 103–9]

To establish national voter registration procedures for Federal elections, and

for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 5, 1993

Mr. SWIFT (for himself, Mr. GEPHARDT, Mr. BONIOR, Mr. HOYER, Mr.

LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. DERRICK, Mrs. KENNELLY, Mr. RICHARDSON,

Mr. FAZIO, Mr. ROSE, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CLAY, Mr. GEJDENSON, Mr.

FROST, Mr. MANTON, Mr. KLECZKA, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. MAZZOLI, Mr.

SCHUMER, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. DICKS, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. MCDERMOTT,

Mrs. UNSOELD, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. INSLEE, Mr. KREIDLER, Mr.

KLEIN, and Mr. BROWN of Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was

referred to the Committee on House Administration

FEBRUARY 2, 1993

Additional sponsors: Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. BACCHUS of Florida, Mrs. BYRNE,

Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. DEUTSCH, Mr. EDWARDS of California, Mr. FILNER,

Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. KANJORSKI, Mr. KOPETSKI, Mr. MCHALE, Mr.

NADLER, Mr. PASTOR, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. REYNOLDS, Mr. SWETT, Mr.

BAESLER, Mr. FINGERHUT, Ms. FURSE, Mr. KLINK, Ms. MCKINNEY,

Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. MENENDEZ, Ms. NORTON, Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO,

Ms. SHEPHERD, Mr. STUPAK, Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. ANDREWS of New Jersey, Mr. BECERRA, Mr. BROWN of California, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. DELLUMS, Mr. FIELDS of Louisiana, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. HALL of Ohio, Ms.

HARMAN, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. MORAN, Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts, Mr. OBEY, Mr. OLVER, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Ms.

VELAZQUEZ, and Mr. WYNN

FEBRUARY 2, 1993

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House

on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
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[Omit the part struck through and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To establish national voter registration procedures for

Federal elections, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Voter Reg5 istration Act of 1993’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

8 (1) the right of citizens of the United States to

9 vote is a fundamental right;

10 (2) it is the duty of the Federal, State, and

11 local governments to promote the exercise of that

12 right; and

13 (3) discriminatory and unfair registration laws

14 and procedures can have a direct and damaging ef15 fect on voter participation in elections for Federal

16 office and disproportionately harm voter participa17 tion by various groups, including racial minorities.

18 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
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1 (1) to establish procedures that will increase

2 the number of eligible citizens who register to vote

3 in elections for Federal office;

4 (2) to make it possible for Federal, State, and

5 local governments to implement this Act in a man6 ner that enhances the participation of eligible citi7 zens as voters in elections for Federal office;

8 (3) to protect the integrity of the electoral proc9 ess; and

10 (4) to ensure that accurate and current voter

11 registration rolls are maintained.

12 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

13 As used in this Act—

14 (1) the term ‘‘election’’ has the meaning stated

15 in section 301(1) of the Federal Election Campaign

16 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(1));

17 (2) the term ‘‘Federal office’’ has the meaning

18 stated in section 301(3) of the Federal Election

19 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(3));

20 (3) the term ‘‘motor vehicle driver’s license’’ in21 cludes any personal identification document issued

22 by a State motor vehicle authority;

23 (4) the term ‘‘State’’ means a State of the

24 United States and the District of Columbia; and
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1 (5) the term ‘‘voter registration agency’’ means

2 an office designated under section 7(a)(1) to per3 form voter registration activities.

4 SEC. 4. NATIONAL PROCEDURES FOR VOTER REGISTRA5 TION FOR ELECTIONS FOR FEDERAL OFFICE.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection

7 (b), notwithstanding any other Federal or State law, in

8 addition to any other method of voter registration pro9 vided for under State law, each State shall establish proce10 dures to register to vote in elections for Federal office—

11 (1) by application made simultaneously with an

12 application for a motor vehicle driver’s license pursu13 ant to section 5;

14 (2) by mail application pursuant to section 6;

15 and

16 (3) by application in person—

17 (A) at the appropriate registration site

18 designated with respect to the residence of the

19 applicant in accordance with State law; and

20 (B) at a Federal, State, or nongovern21 mental office designated under section 7.

22 (b) NONAPPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN STATES.—This

23 Act does not apply to a State described in either or both

24 of the following paragraphs:
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1 (1) A State in which there is no voter registra2 tion requirement for any voter in the State with re3 spect to an election for Federal office.

4 (2) A State in which all voters in the State may

5 register to vote at the polling place at the time of

6 voting in a general election for Federal office.

7 SEC. 5. SIMULTANEOUS APPLICATION FOR VOTER REG8 ISTRATION AND APPLICATION FOR MOTOR

9 VEHICLE DRIVER’S LICENSE.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Except as provided in sub11 section (b), each State motor vehicle driver’s license appli12 cation (including any renewal application) submitted to

13 the appropriate State motor vehicle authority under State

14 law shall serve as an application for voter registration with

15 respect to elections for Federal office.

16 (2) An application for voter registration submitted

17 under paragraph (1) shall be considered as updating any

18 previous voter registration by the applicant.

19 (b) DECLINATION TO REGISTER.—(1) An applicant

20 for a State motor vehicle driver’s license may decline in

21 writing to be registered by means of the motor vehicle

22 driver’s license application.

23 (2) No information relating to a declination pursuant

24 to paragraph (1) may be used for any purpose other than

25 voter registration.
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1 (c) FORMS AND PROCEDURES.—(1) Each State shall

2 include a voter registration application form for elections

3 for Federal office as part of an application for a State

4 motor vehicle driver’s license.

5 (2) The voter registration application portion of an

6 application for a State motor vehicle driver’s license—

7 (A) may not require any information that dupli8 cates information required in the driver’s license

9 portion of the form (other than a second signature

10 or other information necessary under subparagraph

11 (C));

12 (B) shall include a means by which an applicant

13 may decline to register to vote pursuant to sub14 section (b);

15 (C) may require only the minimum amount of

16 information necessary to—

17 (i) prevent duplicate voter registrations;

18 and

19 (ii) enable State election officials to assess

20 the eligibility of the applicant and to administer

21 voter registration and other parts of the elec22 tion process;

23 (D) shall include a statement that—

24 (i) states each eligibility requirement (in25 cluding citizenship);
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1 (ii) contains an attestation that the appli2 cant meets each such requirement; and

3 (iii) requires the signature of the applicant,

4 under penalty of perjury; and

5 (E) shall be made available (as submitted by

6 the applicant, or in machine readable or other for7 mat) to the appropriate State election official as pro8 vided by State law.

9 (d) CHANGE OF ADDRESS.—Any change of address

10 form submitted in accordance with State law for purposes

11 of a State motor vehicle driver’s license shall serve as noti12 fication of change of address for voter registration with

13 respect to elections for Federal office for the registrant

14 involved unless the registrant states on the form that the

15 change of address is not for voter registration purposes.

16 SEC. 6. MAIL REGISTRATION.

17 (a) FORM.—(1) Each State shall accept and use the

18 mail voter registration application form prescribed by the

19 Federal Election Commission pursuant to section 9(a)(2)

20 for the registration of voters in elections for Federal office.

21 (2) In addition to accepting and using the form de22 scribed in paragraph (1), a State may develop and use

23 a mail voter registration form that meets all of the criteria

24 stated in section 9(b) for the registration of voters in elec25 tions for Federal office.
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1 (3) A form described in paragraph (1) or (2) shall

2 be accepted and used for notification of a registrant’s

3 change of address.

4 (b) AVAILABILITY OF FORMS.—The chief State elec5 tion official of a State shall make the forms described in

6 subsection (a) available for distribution through govern7 mental and private entities, with particular emphasis on

8 making them available for organized voter registration

9 programs.

10 (c) FIRST-TIME VOTERS.—(1) Subject to paragraph

11 (2), a State may by law require a person to vote in person

12 if—

13 (A) the person was registered to vote in a juris14 diction by mail; and

15 (B) the person has not previously voted in that

16 jurisdiction.

17 (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in the case of a

18 person—

19 (A) who is entitled to vote by absentee ballot

20 under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absen21 tee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff–1 et seq.);

22 (B) who is provided the right to vote otherwise

23 than in person under section 3(b)(2)(B)(ii) of the

24 Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handi25 capped Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ee–1(b)(2)(B)(ii)); or
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1 (C) who is entitled to vote otherwise than in

2 person under any other Federal law.

3 SEC. 7. VOTER REGISTRATION AGENCIES.

4 (a) DESIGNATION.—(1) Each State shall designate

5 agencies for the registration of voters in elections for Fed6 eral office.

7 (2) Each State shall designate as voter registration

8 agencies—

9 (A) all offices in the State that provide public

10 assistance, unemployment compensation, or related

11 services; and

12 (B) all offices in the State that provide State13 funded programs primarily engaged in providing

14 services to persons with disabilities.

15 (3)(A) In addition to voter registration agencies des16 ignated under paragraph (2), each State shall designate

17 other offices within the State as voter registration agen18 cies.

19 (B) Voter registration agencies designated under sub20 paragraph (A) may include—

21 (i) State or local government offices such as

22 public libraries, public schools, offices of city and

23 county clerks (including marriage license bureaus),

24 fishing and hunting license bureaus, government rev25 enue offices, and offices not described in paragraph
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1 (2)(B) that provide services to persons with disabil2 ities; and

3 (ii) Federal and nongovernmental offices, with

4 the agreement of such offices.

5 (4)(A) At each voter registration agency, the follow6 ing services shall be made available:

7 (i) Distribution of mail voter registration appli8 cation forms in accordance with paragraph (6).

9 (ii) Assistance to applicants in completing voter

10 registration application forms.

11 (iii) Acceptance of completed voter registration

12 application forms for transmittal to the appropriate

13 State election official.

14 (B) If a voter registration agency designated under

15 paragraph (2)(B) provides services to a person with a dis16 ability at the person’s home, the agency shall provide the

17 services described in subparagraph (A) at the person’s

18 home.

19 (5) A person who provides service described in para20 graph (4) shall not—

21 (A) seek to influence an applicant’s political

22 preference or party registration;

23 (B) display any such political preference or

24 party allegiance; or
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1 (C) make any statement to an applicant or take

2 any action the purpose or effect of which is to dis3 courage the applicant from registering to vote.

4 (6) A voter registration agency that is an office that

5 provides service or assistance in addition to conducting

6 voter registration shall—

7 (A) distribute with each application for such

8 service or assistance, and with each recertification,

9 renewal, or change of address form relating to such

10 service or assistance—

11 (i) the mail voter registration application

12 form described in section 9(a)(2); or

13 (ii) the office’s own form if it is substan14 tially equivalent to the form described in section

15 9(a)(2),

16 unless the applicant, in writing, declines to register

17 to vote;

18 (B) to the greatest extent practicable, incor19 porate in application forms and other forms used at

20 those offices for purposes other than voter registra21 tion a means by which a person who completes the

22 form may decline, in writing, to register to vote in

23 elections for Federal office; and

24 (C) provide to each applicant who does not de25 cline to register to vote the same degree of assist-
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1 ance with regard to the completion of the registra2 tion application form as is provided by the office

3 with regard to the completion of its own forms.

4 (7) No information relating to a declination to reg5 ister to vote in connection with an application made at

6 an office described in paragraph (6) may be used for any

7 purpose other than voter registration.

8 (b) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE SECTOR

9 COOPERATION.—All departments, agencies, and other en10 tities of the executive branch of the Federal Government

11 shall, to the greatest extent practicable, cooperate with the

12 States in carrying out subsection (a), and all nongovern13 mental entities are encouraged to do so.

14 (c) TRANSMITTAL DEADLINE.—(1) Subject to para15 graph (2), a completed registration application accepted

16 at a voter registration agency shall be transmitted to the

17 appropriate State election official not later than 10 days

18 after the date of acceptance.

19 (2) If a registration application is accepted within 5

20 days before the last day for registration to vote in an elec21 tion, the application shall be transmitted to the appro22 priate State election official not later than 5 days after

23 the date of acceptance.
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1 SEC. 8. REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT TO ADMINISTRA2 TION OF VOTER REGISTRATION.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—In the administration of voter

4 registration for elections for Federal office, each State

5 shall—

6 (1) ensure that any eligible applicant is reg7 istered to vote in an election—

8 (A) in the case of registration with a motor

9 vehicle application under section 5, if the valid

10 voter registration form of the applicant is sub11 mitted to the appropriate State motor vehicle

12 authority not later than the lesser of 30 days,

13 or the period provided by State law, before the

14 date of the election;

15 (B) in the case of registration by mail

16 under section 6, if the valid voter registration

17 form of the applicant is postmarked not later

18 than the lesser of 30 days, or the period pro19 vided by State law, before the date of the elec20 tion;

21 (C) in the case of registration at a voter

22 registration agency, if the valid voter registra23 tion form of the applicant is accepted at the

24 voter registration agency not later than the

25 lesser of 30 days, or the period provided by

26 State law, before the date of the election; and
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1 (D) in any other case, if the valid voter

2 registration form of the applicant is received by

3 the appropriate State election official not later

4 than the lesser of 30 days, or the period pro5 vided by State law, before the date of the elec6 tion;

7 (2) require the appropriate State election offi8 cial to send notice to each applicant of the disposi9 tion of the application;

10 (3) provide that the name of a registrant may

11 not be removed from the official list of eligible voters

12 except—

13 (A) at the request of the registrant;

14 (B) as provided by State law, by reason of

15 criminal conviction or mental incapacity; or

16 (C) as provided under paragraph (4);

17 (4) conduct a general program that makes a

18 reasonable effort to remove the names of ineligible

19 voters from the official lists of eligible voters by rea20 son of—

21 (A) the death of the registrant; or

22 (B) a change in the residence of the reg23 istrant, in accordance with subsections (b), (c),

24 and (d);
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1 (5) inform applicants under sections 5, 6, and

2 7 of—

3 (A) voter eligibility requirements; and

4 (B) penalties provided by law for submis5 sion of a false voter registration application;

6 and

7 (6) ensure that the identity of the voter reg8 istration agency through which any particular voter

9 is registered is not disclosed to the public.

10 (b) CONFIRMATION OF VOTER REGISTRATION.—Any

11 State program or activity to protect the integrity of the

12 electoral process by ensuring the maintenance of an accu13 rate and current voter registration roll for elections for

14 Federal office—

15 (1) shall be uniform, nondiscriminatory, and in

16 compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42

17 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.); and

18 (2) shall not result in the removal of the name

19 of any person from the official list of voters reg20 istered to vote in an election for Federal office by

21 reason of the person’s failure to vote.

22 (c) VOTER REMOVAL PROGRAMS.—(1) A State may

23 meet the requirement of subsection (a)(4) by establishing

24 a program under which—
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1 (A) change-of-address information supplied by

2 the Postal Service through its licensees is used to

3 identify registrants whose addresses may have

4 changed; and

5 (B) if it appears from information provided by

6 the Postal Service that—

7 (i) a registrant has moved to a different

8 residence address in the same registrar’s juris9 diction in which the registrant is currently reg10 istered, the registrar changes the registration

11 records to show the new address and sends the

12 registrant a notice of the change by forwardable

13 mail and a postage prepaid pre-addressed re14 turn form by which the registrant may verify or

15 correct the address information; or

16 (ii) the registrant has moved to a different

17 residence address not in the same registrar’s ju18 risdiction, the registrar uses the notice proce19 dure described in subsection (d)(2) to confirm

20 the change of address.

21 (2)(A) A State shall complete, not later than 90 days

22 prior to the date of a primary or general election for Fed23 eral office, any program the purpose of which is to system24 atically remove the names of ineligible voters from the offi25 cial lists of eligible voters.
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1 (B) Subparagraph (A) shall not be construed to

2 preclude—

3 (i) the removal of names from official lists of

4 voters on a basis described in paragraph (3) (A) or

5 (B) or (4)(A) of subsection (a); or

6 (ii) correction of registration records pursuant

7 to this Act.

8 (d) REMOVAL OF NAMES FROM VOTING ROLLS.—(1)

9 A State shall not remove the name of a registrant from

10 the official list of eligible voters in elections for Federal

11 office on the ground that the registrant has changed resi12 dence unless the registrant—

13 (A) confirms in writing that the registrant has

14 changed residence to a place outside the registrar’s

15 jurisdiction in which the registrant is registered; or

16 (B)(i) has failed to respond to a notice de17 scribed in paragraph (2); and

18 (ii) has not voted or appeared to vote (and, if

19 necessary, correct the registrar’s record of the reg20 istrant’s address) in an election during the period

21 beginning on the date of the notice and ending on

22 the day after the date of the second general election

23 for Federal office that occurs after the date of the

24 notice.
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1 (2) A notice is described in this paragraph if it is

2 a postage prepaid and pre-addressed return card, sent by

3 forwardable mail, on which the registrant may state his

4 or her current address, together with a notice to the fol5 lowing effect:

6 (A) If the registrant did not change his or her

7 residence, or changed residence but remained in the

8 registrar’s jurisdiction, the registrant should return

9 the card not later than the time provided for mail

10 registration under subsection (a)(1)(B). If the card

11 is not returned, affirmation or confirmation of the

12 registrant’s address may be required before the reg13 istrant is permitted to vote in a Federal election

14 during the period beginning on the date of the notice

15 and ending on the day after the date of the second

16 general election for Federal office that occurs after

17 the date of the notice, and if the registrant does not

18 vote in an election during that period the reg19 istrant’s name will be removed from the list of eligi20 ble voters.

21 (B) If the registrant has changed residence to

22 a place outside the registrar’s jurisdiction in which

23 the registrant is registered, information concerning

24 how the registrant can continue to be eligible to

25 vote.
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1 (3) A voting registrar shall correct an official list of

2 eligible voters in elections for Federal office in accordance

3 with change of residence information obtained in conform4 ance with this subsection.

5 (e) PROCEDURE FOR VOTING FOLLOWING FAILURE

6 TO RETURN CARD.—(1) A registrant who has moved from

7 an address in the area covered by a polling place to an

8 address in the same area shall, notwithstanding failure to

9 notify the registrar of the change of address prior to the

10 date of an election, be permitted to vote at that polling

11 place upon oral or written affirmation by the registrant

12 of the change of address before an election official at that

13 polling place.

14 (2)(A) A registrant who has moved from an address

15 in the area covered by one polling place to an address in

16 an area covered by a second polling place within the same

17 registrar’s jurisdiction and the same congressional district

18 and who has failed to notify the registrar of the change

19 of address prior to the date of an election, at the option

20 of the registrant—

21 (i) shall be permitted to correct the voting

22 records and vote at the registrant’s former polling

23 place, upon oral or written affirmation by the reg24 istrant of the new address before an election official

25 at that polling place; or
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1 (ii)(I) shall be permitted to correct the voting

2 records and vote at a central location within the

3 same registrar’s jurisdiction designated by the reg4 istrar where a list of eligible voters is maintained,

5 upon written affirmation by the registrant of the

6 new address on a standard form provided by the

7 registrar at the central location; or

8 (II) shall be permitted to correct the voting

9 records for purposes of voting in future elections at

10 the appropriate polling place for the current address

11 and, if permitted by State law, shall be permitted to

12 vote in the present election, upon confirmation by

13 the registrant of the new address by such means as

14 are required by law.

15 (B) If State law permits the registrant to vote in the

16 current election upon oral or written affirmation by the

17 registrant of the new address at a polling place described

18 in subparagraph (A)(ii)(II), voting at the former polling

19 place as described in subparagraph (A)(i) and at a central

20 location as described in subparagraph (A)(ii)(I) need not

21 be provided as alternative options.

22 (3) If the registration records indicate that a reg23 istrant has moved from an address in the area covered

24 by a polling place, the registrant shall, upon oral or writ25 ten affirmation by the registrant before an election official
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1 at that polling place that the registrant continues to reside

2 at the address previously made known to the registrar, be

3 permitted to vote at that polling place.

4 (f) CHANGE OF VOTING ADDRESS WITHIN A JURIS5 DICTION.—In the case of a change of address, for voting

6 purposes, of a registrant to another address within the

7 same registrar’s jurisdiction, the registrar shall correct the

8 voting registration list accordingly, and the registrant’s

9 name may not be removed from the official list of eligible

10 voters by reason of such a change of address except as

11 provided in subsection (d).

12 (g) CONVICTION IN FEDERAL COURT.—(1) On the

13 conviction of a person of a felony in a district court of

14 the United States, the United States attorney shall give

15 written notice of the conviction to the chief State election

16 official designated under section 10 of the State of the

17 person’s residence.

18 (2) A notice given pursuant to paragraph (1) shall

19 include—

20 (A) the name of the offender;

21 (B) the offender’s age and residence address;

22 (C) the date of entry of the judgment;

23 (D) a description of the offenses of which the

24 offender was convicted; and

25 (E) the sentence imposed by the court.
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1 (3) On request of the chief State election official of

2 a State or other State official with responsibility for deter3 mining the effect that a conviction may have on an offend4 er’s qualification to vote, the United States attorney shall

5 provide such additional information as the United States

6 attorney may have concerning the offender and the offense

7 of which the offender was convicted.

8 (4) If a conviction of which notice was given pursuant

9 to paragraph (1) is overturned, the United States attorney

10 shall give the official to whom the notice was given written

11 notice of the vacation of the judgment.

12 (5) The chief State election official shall notify the

13 voter registration officials of the local jurisdiction in which

14 an offender resides of the information received under this

15 subsection.

16 (h) REDUCED POSTAL RATES.—(1) Subchapter II of

17 chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is amended

18 by adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘§ 3629. Reduced rates for voter registration pur20 poses

21 ‘‘The Postal Service shall make available to a State

22 or local voting registration official the rate for any class

23 of mail that is available to a qualified nonprofit organiza24 tion under section 3626 for the purpose of making a mail-
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1 ing that the official certifies is required or authorized by

2 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.’’.

3 (2) Section 2401(c) of title 39, United States Code,

4 is amended by striking ‘‘and 3626(a)–(h)’’ and inserting

5 ‘‘3626(a)–(h), and 3629’’.

6 (3) Section 3627 of title 39, United States Code, is

7 amended by striking ‘‘or 3626 of this title,’’ and inserting

8 ‘‘, 3626, or 3629 of this title’’.

9 (2) The first sentence of section 2401(c) of title 39,

10 United States Code, is amended by striking out ‘‘and

11 3626(a)–(h) and (j)–(k) of this title,’’ and inserting in lieu

12 thereof ‘‘3626(a)–(h), 3626(j)–(k), and 3629 of this title’’.

13 (3) Section 3627 of title 39, United States Code, is

14 amended by striking out ‘‘or 3626 of this title,’’ and insert15 ing in lieu thereof ‘‘3626, or 3629 of this title’’.

16 (4) The table of sections for chapter 36 of title 39,

17 United States Code, is amended by inserting after the

18 item relating to section 3628 the following new item:

‘‘3629. Reduced rates for voter registration purposes.’’.

19 (i) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF VOTER REGISTRATION

20 ACTIVITIES.—(1) Each State shall maintain for at least

21 2 years and shall make available for public inspection and,

22 where available, photocopying at a reasonable cost, all

23 records concerning the implementation of programs and

24 activities conducted for the purpose of ensuring the accu-
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1 racy and currency of official lists of eligible voters, except

2 to the extent that such records relate to a declination to

3 register to vote or to the identity of a voter registration

4 agency through which any particular voter is registered.

5 (2) The records maintained pursuant to paragraph

6 (1) shall include lists of the names and addresses of all

7 persons to whom notices described in subsection (d)(2) are

8 sent, and information concerning whether or not each such

9 person has responded to the notice as of the date that

10 inspection of the records is made.

11 (j) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this section,

12 the term ‘‘registrar’s jurisdiction’’ means—

13 (1) an incorporated city, town, borough, or

14 other form of municipality;

15 (2) if voter registration is maintained by a

16 county, parish, or other unit of government that gov17 erns a larger geographic area than a municipality,

18 the geographic area governed by that unit of govern19 ment; or

20 (3) if voter registration is maintained on a con21 solidated basis for more than one municipality or

22 other unit of government by an office that performs

23 all of the functions of a voting registrar, the geo24 graphic area of the consolidated municipalities or

25 other geographic units.
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1 SEC. 9. FEDERAL COORDINATION AND REGULATIONS.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Election Commis3 sion—

4 (1) in consultation with the chief election offi5 cers of the States, the heads of the departments,

6 agencies, and other entities of the executive branch

7 of the Federal Government, and representatives of

8 nongovernmental entities, shall prescribe such regu9 lations as are necessary to carry out this Act;

10 (2) in consultation with the chief election offi11 cers of the States, shall develop a mail voter reg12 istration application form for elections for Federal

13 office;

14 (3) not later than June 30 of each odd-num15 bered year, shall submit to the Congress a report as16 sessing the impact of this Act on the administration

17 of elections for Federal office during the preceding

18 2-year period and including recommendations for

19 improvements in Federal and State procedures,

20 forms, and other matters affected by this Act; and

21 (4) shall provide information to the States with

22 respect to the responsibilities of the States under

23 this Act.

24 (b) CONTENTS OF MAIL VOTER REGISTRATION

25 FORM.—The mail voter registration form developed under

26 subsection (a)(2)—
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1 (1) may require only such identifying informa2 tion (including the signature of the applicant) and

3 other information (including data relating to pre4 vious registration by the applicant), as is necessary

5 to enable the appropriate State election official to

6 assess the eligibility of the applicant and to admin7 ister voter registration and other parts of the elec8 tion process;

9 (2) shall include a statement that—

10 (A) specifies each eligibility requirement

11 (including citizenship);

12 (B) contains an attestation that the appli13 cant meets each such requirement; and

14 (C) requires the signature of the applicant,

15 under penalty of perjury; and

16 (3) may not include any requirement for notari17 zation or other formal authentication.

18 SEC. 10. DESIGNATION OF CHIEF STATE ELECTION OFFI19 CIAL.

20 Each State shall designate a State officer or employee

21 as the chief State election official to be responsible for co22 ordination of State responsibilities under this Act.
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1 SEC. 11. CIVIL ENFORCEMENT AND PRIVATE RIGHT OF AC2 TION.

3 (a) ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attorney General

4 may bring a civil action in an appropriate district court

5 for such declaratory or injunctive relief as is necessary to

6 carry out this Act.

7 (b) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—(1) A person who

8 is aggrieved by a violation of this Act may provide written

9 notice of the violation to the chief election official of the

10 State involved.

11 (2) If the violation is not corrected within 90 days

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

13 20 days after receipt of the notice if the violation occurred

14 within 120 days before the date of an election for Federal

15 office, the aggrieved person may bring a civil action in an

16 appropriate district court for declaratory or injunctive re17 lief with respect to the violation.

18 (3) If the violation occurred within 30 days before

19 the date of an election for Federal office, the aggrieved

20 person need not provide notice to the chief election official

21 of the State under paragraph (1) before bringing a civil

22 action under paragraph (2).

23 (c) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—In a civil action under this

24 section, the court may allow the prevailing party (other

25 than the United States) reasonable attorney fees, includ26 ing litigation expenses, and costs.
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1 (d) RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.—(1) The rights and

2 remedies established by this section are in addition to all

3 other rights and remedies provided by law, and neither

4 the rights and remedies established by this section nor any

5 other provision of this Act shall supersede, restrict, or

6 limit the application of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42

7 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.).

8 (2) Nothing in this Act authorizes or requires con9 duct that is prohibited by the Voting Rights Act of 1965

10 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.).

11 SEC. 12. CRIMINAL PENALTIES.

12 A person, including an election official, who in any

13 election for Federal office—

14 (1) knowingly and willfully intimidates, threat15 ens, or coerces, or attempts to intimidate, threaten,

16 or coerce, any person for—

17 (A) registering to vote, or voting, or at18 tempting to register or vote;

19 (B) urging or aiding any person to register

20 to vote, to vote, or to attempt to register or

21 vote; or

22 (C) exercising any right under this Act; or

23 (2) knowingly and willfully deprives, defrauds,

24 or attempts to deprive or defraud the residents of a
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1 State of a fair and impartially conducted election

2 process, by—

3 (A) the procurement or submission of voter

4 registration applications that are known by the

5 person to be materially false, fictitious, or

6 fraudulent under the laws of the State in which

7 the election is held; or

8 (B) the procurement, casting, or tabulation

9 of ballots that are known by the person to be

10 materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent under

11 the laws of the State in which the election is

12 held,

13 shall be fined in accordance with title 18, United States

14 Code, or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.

15 SEC. 13. EFFECTIVE DATE.

16 This Act shall take effect—

17 (1) with respect to a State that on the date of

18 enactment of this Act has a provision in the con19 stitution of the State that would preclude compliance

20 with this Act unless the State maintained separate

21 Federal and State official lists of eligible voters,

22 on January 1, 1996; and

23 (2) with respect to any State not described in

24 paragraph (1), on January 1, 1995.