I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5719 
To secure the Federal voting rights of non-violent persons when released 
from incarceration. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 14, 2014 
Ms. WILSON of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To secure the Federal voting rights of non-violent persons 
when released from incarceration. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Civil Rights Voting 
Restoration Act of 2014’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) CORRECTIONAL
INSTITUTION
OR
FACIL-
ITY.—The term ‘‘correctional institution or facility’’ 
means any prison, penitentiary, jail, or other institu-
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tion 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 selec-
tion of delegates to a national nominating con-
vention of a political party; or 
(D) a primary election held for the expres-
sion of a preference for the nomination of per-
sons for election to the office of President. 
(3) FEDERAL OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Federal of-
fice’’ means the office of President or Vice President 
of the United States, or of Senator or Representa-
tive in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 
the Congress of the United States. 
(4) NON-VIOLENT
CRIMINAL
OFFENSE.—The 
term ‘‘non-violent criminal offense’’ means any of-
fense that is not a crime of violence (as defined in 
section 16 of title 18, United States Code). 
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(5) PROBATION.—The term ‘‘probation’’ means 
probation or parole supervision, imposed by a Fed-
eral, State, or local court or parole board, with or 
without a condition on the individual involved con-
cerning— 
(A) the individual’s freedom of movement; 
(B) the payment of damages by the indi-
vidual; 
(C) periodic reporting by the individual to 
an officer of the court or parole board; or 
(D) supervision of the individual by an of-
ficer of the court or parole board. 
SEC. 3. RIGHTS OF CITIZENS. 
(a) RIGHT TO VOTE.—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 
the individual has been convicted of a non-violent criminal 
offense, unless, at the time of the election, the individual— 
(1) is serving a sentence in a correctional insti-
tution or facility; or 
(2) subject to subsection (b), is serving a term 
of probation. 
(b) RESTORATION OF VOTING RIGHTS FOR INDIVID-
UALS ON PROBATION.—An individual who is serving a 
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term of probation shall have the right to vote restored in 
any election for Federal office— 
(1) on the date on which the term of probation 
ends, if the term of probation is less than 1 year; 
or 
(2) on the date that is 1 year after the date on 
which the individual begins serving the term of pro-
bation, if the term of probation is 1 year or longer. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 
1 year after the date of enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 4. ATTORNEY GENERAL DESIGNATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall 
determine which criminal offenses under Federal law and 
the laws of each State are non-violent criminal offenses 
and establish a list of all such offenses. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—The list established under sub-
section (a) shall be— 
(1) made publicly available, in a searchable for-
mat, on the website of the Department of Justice; 
and 
(2) updated no less frequently than every year. 
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SEC. 5. 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 viola-
tion occurred within 120 days before the date of an 
election for Federal office, the aggrieved person 
may, in a civil action, obtain declaratory or injunc-
tive 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. 
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SEC. 6. NOTIFICATION OF RESTORATION OF VOTING 
RIGHTS. 
(a) STATE NOTIFICATION.— 
(1) NOTIFICATION.—On the date determined 
under paragraph (2), each State shall notify in writ-
ing any individual who has been convicted of a non- 
violent criminal offense under the law of that State 
that the individual has, pursuant to this Act, the 
right to vote in an election for Federal office and to 
register to vote in any such election, subject to sec-
tion 7(c). 
(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 para-
graph (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 fel-
ony conviction). 
(B) MISDEMEANOR
CONVICTION.—In the 
case of such an individual who has been con-
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victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re-
quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 
the date on which the individual is sentenced by 
a State court. 
(b) FEDERAL NOTIFICATION.— 
(1) NOTIFICATION.—On the date determined 
under paragraph (2), the Director of the Bureau of 
Prisons shall notify in writing any individual who 
has been convicted of a non-violent criminal offense 
under Federal law that the individual has, pursuant 
to this Act, the right to vote in an election for Fed-
eral office and to register to vote in any such elec-
tion, subject to section 7(c). 
(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 para-
graph (1) shall be given on the date on which 
the individual— 
(i) is sentenced to serve only a term 
of probation by a court established by an 
Act of Congress; or 
(ii) is released from the custody of the 
Bureau of Prisons (other than to the cus-
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tody of a State to serve a term of impris-
onment for a felony conviction). 
(B) MISDEMEANOR
CONVICTION.—In the 
case of such an individual who has been con-
victed of a misdemeanor, the notification re-
quired under paragraph (1) shall be given on 
the date on which the individual is sentenced by 
a State 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 rem-
edies established by this Act— 
(1) are in addition to all other rights and rem-
edies provided by law; and 
(2) shall not supersede, restrict, or limit the ap-
plication of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 
U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) or the National Voter Reg-
istration Act (52 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.). 
(c) STATE LAWS RELATING TO VOTER REGISTRA-
TION.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to preempt 
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State laws relating to the timing of voter registration for 
any election for Federal office. 
SEC. 8. FEDERAL PRISON FUNDS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—No State, unit of local govern-
ment, or other person may receive or use, to construct or 
otherwise improve a prison, jail, or other place of incarcer-
ation, any Federal grant amounts unless that person has 
in effect a program under which each individual incarcer-
ated in that person’s jurisdiction is notified, upon release 
from such incarceration, of that individual’s rights under 
section 3. 
(b) STATE NON-COMPLIANCE WITH NOTIFICATION 
REQUIREMENTS.—No State may receive or use, to con-
struct or otherwise improve a prison, jail, or other place 
of incarceration, any Federal grant amounts unless the 
State is in compliance with the notification requirements 
under section 6(a). 
Æ 
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