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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 772 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 772

   To secure the Federal voting rights of persons when released from 
                             incarceration.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 18, 2015

     Mr. Cardin (for himself, Mr. Reid, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Durbin, Mr. 
Whitehouse, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Brown, Mrs. Gillibrand, and 
  Mr. Booker) 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.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Democracy Restoration Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The right to vote is the most basic constitutive act of 
        citizenship. Regaining the right to vote reintegrates 
        individuals with criminal convictions into free society, 
        helping to enhance public safety.
            (2) Article I, section 4, of the Constitution grants 
        Congress ultimate supervisory power over Federal elections, an 
        authority which has repeatedly been upheld by the United States 
        Supreme Court.
            (3) Basic constitutional principles of fairness and equal 
        protection require an equal opportunity for citizens of the 
        United States to vote in Federal elections. The right to vote 
        may not be abridged or denied by the United States or by any 
        State on account of race, color, gender, or previous condition 
        of servitude. The 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, and 26th 
        Amendments to the Constitution empower Congress to enact 
        measures to protect the right to vote in Federal elections. The 
        8th Amendment to the Constitution provides for no excessive 
        bail to be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and 
        unusual punishments inflicted.
            (4) There are 3 areas where discrepancies in State laws 
        regarding criminal convictions lead to unfairness in Federal 
        elections--
                    (A) the lack of a uniform standard for voting in 
                Federal elections leads to an unfair disparity and 
                unequal participation in Federal elections based solely 
                on where a person lives;
                    (B) laws governing the restoration of voting rights 
                after a criminal conviction vary throughout the country 
                and persons in some States can easily regain their 
                voting rights while in other States persons effectively 
                lose their right to vote permanently; and
                    (C) State disenfranchisement laws 
                disproportionately impact racial and ethnic minorities.
            (5) Two States do not disenfranchise individuals with 
        criminal convictions at all (Maine and Vermont), but 48 States 
        and the District of Columbia have laws that deny convicted 
        individuals the right to vote while they are in prison.
            (6) In some States disenfranchisement results from varying 
        State laws that restrict voting while individuals are under the 
        supervision of the criminal justice system or after they have 
        completed a criminal sentence. In 35 States, convicted 
        individuals may not vote while they are on parole and 31 of 
        those States disenfranchise individuals on felony probation as 
        well. In 11 States, a conviction can result in lifetime 
        disenfranchisement.
            (7) Several States deny the right to vote to individuals 
        convicted of certain misdemeanors.
            (8) An estimated 5,850,000 citizens of the United States, 
        or about 1 in 40 adults in the United States, currently cannot 
        vote as a result of a felony conviction. Of the 5,850,000 
        citizens barred from voting, only 25 percent are in prison. By 
        contrast, 75 percent of the disenfranchised reside in their 
        communities while on probation or parole or after having 
        completed their sentences. Approximately 2,600,000 citizens who 
        have completed their sentences remain disenfranchised due to 
        restrictive State laws. In 6 States--Alabama, Florida, 
        Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Virginia--more than 7 
        percent of the total population is disenfranchised.
            (9) In those States that disenfranchise individuals post-
        sentence, the right to vote can be regained in theory, but in 
        practice this possibility is often granted in a non-uniform and 
        potentially discriminatory manner. Disenfranchised individuals 
        must either obtain a pardon or an order from the Governor or an 
        action by the parole or pardon board, depending on the offense 
        and State. Individuals convicted of a Federal offense often 
        have additional barriers to regaining voting rights.
            (10) State disenfranchisement laws disproportionately 
        impact racial and ethnic minorities. Eight percent of the 
        African-American population, or 2,000,000 African-Americans, 
        are disenfranchised. Given current rates of incarceration, 
        approximately 1 in 3 of the next generation of African-American 
        men will be disenfranchised at some point during their 
        lifetime. Currently, 1 of every 13 African-Americans are 
        rendered unable to vote because of felony disenfranchisement, 
        which is a rate 4 times greater than non African-Americans. 7.7 
        percent of African-Americans are disenfranchised whereas only 
        1.8 percent of non African-Americans are. In 3 States--Florida 
        (23 percent), Kentucky (22 percent), and Virginia (20 
        percent)--more than 1 in 5 African-Americans are unable to vote 
        because of prior convictions.
            (11) Latino citizens are disproportionately disenfranchised 
        based upon their disproportionate representation in the 
        criminal justice system. If current incarceration trends hold, 
        17 percent of Latino men will be incarcerated during their 
        lifetimes, in contrast to less than 6 percent of non-Latino 
        White men. When analyzing the data across 10 States, Latinos 
        generally have disproportionately higher rates of 
        disenfranchisement compared to their presence in the voting age 
        population. In 6 out of 10 States studied in 2003, Latinos 
        constitute more than 10 percent of the total number of persons 
        disenfranchised by State felony laws. In 4 States (California, 
        37 percent; New York, 34 percent; Texas, 30 percent; and 
        Arizona, 27 percent), Latinos were disenfranchised by a rate of 
        more than 25 percent.
            (12) Disenfranchising citizens who have been convicted of a 
        criminal offense and who are living and working in the 
        community serves no compelling State interest and hinders their 
        rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
            (13) State disenfranchisement laws can suppress electoral 
        participation among eligible voters by discouraging voting 
        among family and community members of disenfranchised persons. 
        Future electoral participation by the children of 
        disenfranchised parents may be impacted as well.
            (14) The United States is the only Western democracy that 
        permits the permanent denial of voting rights for individuals 
        with felony convictions.

SEC. 3. RIGHTS OF CITIZENS.

    The right of an individual who is a citizen of the United States to 
vote in any election for Federal office shall not be denied or abridged 
because that individual has been convicted of a criminal offense unless 
such individual is serving a felony sentence in a correctional 
institution or facility at the time of the election.

SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Attorney General.--The Attorney General may, in a civil action, 
obtain such declaratory or injunctive relief as is necessary to remedy 
a violation of this Act.
    (b) Private Right of Action.--
            (1) In general.--A person who is aggrieved by a violation 
        of this Act may provide written notice of the violation to the 
        chief election official of the State involved.
            (2) Relief.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), if the 
        violation is not corrected within 90 days after receipt of a 
        notice under paragraph (1), or within 20 days after receipt of 
        the notice if the violation occurred within 120 days before the 
        date of an election for Federal office, the aggrieved person 
        may, in a civil action, obtain declaratory or injunctive relief 
        with respect to the violation.
            (3) Exception.--If the violation occurred within 30 days 
        before the date of an election for Federal office, the 
        aggrieved person need not provide notice to the chief election 
        official of the State under paragraph (1) before bringing a 
        civil action to obtain declaratory or injunctive relief with 
        respect to the violation.

SEC. 5. NOTIFICATION OF RESTORATION OF VOTING RIGHTS.

    (a) State Notification.--
            (1) Notification.--On the date determined under paragraph 
        (2), each State shall notify in writing any individual who has 
        been convicted of a criminal offense under the law of that 
        State that such individual has the right to vote in an election 
        for Federal office pursuant to the Democracy Restoration Act of 
        2015 and may register to vote in any such election.
            (2) Date of notification.--
                    (A) Felony conviction.--In the case of such an 
                individual who has been convicted of a felony, the 
                notification required under paragraph (1) shall be 
                given on the date on which the individual--
                            (i) is sentenced to serve only a term of 
                        probation; or
                            (ii) is released from the custody of that 
                        State (other than to the custody of another 
                        State or the Federal Government to serve a term 
                        of imprisonment for a felony conviction).
                    (B) Misdemeanor conviction.--In the case of such an 
                individual who has been convicted of a misdemeanor, the 
                notification required under paragraph (1) shall be 
                given on the date on which such individual is sentenced 
                by a State court.
    (b) Federal Notification.--
            (1) Notification.--Any individual who has been convicted of 
        a criminal offense under Federal law shall be notified in 
        accordance with paragraph (2) that such individual has the 
        right to vote in an election for Federal office pursuant to the 
        Democracy Restoration Act of 2015 and may register to vote in 
        any such election.
            (2) Date of notification.--
                    (A) Felony conviction.--In the case of such an 
                individual who has been convicted of a felony, the 
                notification required under paragraph (1) shall be 
                given--
                            (i) in the case of an individual who is 
                        sentenced to serve only a term of probation, by 
                        the Assistant Director for the Office of 
                        Probation and Pretrial Services of the 
                        Administrative Office of the United States 
                        Courts on the date on which the individual is 
                        sentenced; or
                            (ii) in the case of any individual 
                        committed to the custody of the Bureau of 
                        Prisons, by the Director of the Bureau of 
                        Prisons, during the period beginning on the 
                        date that is 6 months before such individual is 
                        released and ending on the date such individual 
                        is released from the custody of the Bureau of 
                        Prisons.
                    (B) Misdemeanor conviction.--In the case of such an 
                individual who has been convicted of a misdemeanor, the 
                notification required under paragraph (1) shall be 
                given on the date on which such individual is sentenced 
                by a court established by an Act of Congress.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Correctional institution or facility.--The term 
        ``correctional institution or facility'' means any prison, 
        penitentiary, jail, or other institution or facility for the 
        confinement of individuals convicted of criminal offenses, 
        whether publicly or privately operated, except that such term 
        does not include any residential community treatment center (or 
        similar public or private facility).
            (2) Election.--The term ``election'' means--
                    (A) a general, special, primary, or runoff 
                election;
                    (B) a convention or caucus of a political party 
                held to nominate a candidate;
                    (C) a primary election held for the selection of 
                delegates to a national nominating convention of a 
                political party; or
                    (D) a primary election held for the expression of a 
                preference for the nomination of persons for election 
                to the office of President.
            (3) Federal office.--The term ``Federal office'' means the 
        office of President or Vice President of the United States, or 
        of Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident 
        Commissioner to, the Congress of the United States.
            (4) Probation.--The term ``probation'' means probation, 
        imposed by a Federal, State, or local court, with or without a 
        condition on the individual involved concerning--
                    (A) the individual's freedom of movement;
                    (B) the payment of damages by the individual;
                    (C) periodic reporting by the individual to an 
                officer of the court; or
                    (D) supervision of the individual by an officer of 
                the court.

SEC. 7. RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.

    (a) State Laws Relating to Voting Rights.--Nothing in this Act 
shall be construed to prohibit the States from enacting any State law 
which affords the right to vote in any election for Federal office on 
terms less restrictive than those established by this Act.
    (b) Certain Federal Acts.--The rights and remedies established by 
this Act are in addition to all other rights and remedies provided by 
law, and neither rights and remedies established by this Act shall 
supersede, restrict, or limit the application of the Voting Rights Act 
of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.) or the National Voter Registration Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1973-gg).

SEC. 8. FEDERAL PRISON FUNDS.

    No State, unit of local government, or other person may receive or 
use, to construct or otherwise improve a prison, jail, or other place 
of incarceration, any Federal funds unless that person has in effect a 
program under which each individual incarcerated in that person's 
jurisdiction who is a citizen of the United States is notified, upon 
release from such incarceration, of that individual's rights under 
section 3.

SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act shall apply to citizens of the United States voting in any 
election for Federal office held after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
                                 <all>
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