I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 103 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prevent the election practice 
known as caging, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 6, 2009 
Mr. CONYERS (for himself, Mr. NADLER of New York, Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of 
California, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. 
WEXLER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, and Mr. 
SCHIFF) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prevent the 
election practice known as caging, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Caging Prohibition Act 
of 2009’’. 
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SEC. 2. VOTER CAGING AND OTHER QUESTIONABLE CHAL-
LENGES PROHIBITED. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 
States Code is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 618. Voter caging and other questionable chal-
lenges 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘voter caging document’ means— 
‘‘(A) a nonforwardable document that is 
returned to the sender or a third party as unde-
livered or undeliverable despite an attempt to 
deliver such document to the address of a reg-
istered voter or applicant; or 
‘‘(B) any document with instructions to an 
addressee that the document be returned to the 
sender or a third party but is not so returned, 
despite an attempt to deliver such document to 
the address of a registered voter or applicant, 
unless at least two Federal election cycles have 
passed since the date of the attempted delivery; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘voter caging list’ means a list of 
individuals compiled from voter caging documents; 
and 
‘‘(3) the term ‘unverified match list’ means a 
list produced by matching the information of reg-
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istered voters or applicants for voter registration to 
a list of individuals who are ineligible to vote in the 
registrar’s jurisdiction, by virtue of death, convic-
tion, change of address, or otherwise; unless one of 
the pieces of information matched includes a signa-
ture, photograph, or unique identifying number en-
suring that the information from each source refers 
to the same individual. 
‘‘(b) PROHIBITION AGAINST VOTER CAGING.—No 
State or local election official shall prevent an individual 
from registering or voting in any election for Federal of-
fice, or permit in connection with any election for Federal 
office a formal challenge under State law to an individual’s 
registration status or eligibility to vote, if the basis for 
such decision is evidence consisting of— 
‘‘(1) a voter caging document or voter caging 
list; 
‘‘(2) an unverified match list; 
‘‘(3) an error or omission on any record or 
paper relating to any application, registration, or 
other act requisite to voting, if such error or omis-
sion is not material to an individual’s eligibility to 
vote under section 2004 of the Revised Statutes, as 
amended (42 U.S.C. 1971(a)(2)(B)); or 
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‘‘(4) any other evidence so designated for pur-
poses of this section by the Election Assistance Com-
mission, 
except that the election official may use such evidence if 
it is corroborated by independent evidence of the individ-
ual’s ineligibility to register or vote. 
‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR CHALLENGES BY PERSONS 
OTHER THAN ELECTION OFFICIALS.— 
‘‘(1) ATTESTATION
OF
FIRST-HAND
KNOWL-
EDGE OF INELIGIBILITY.—No person, other than a 
State or local election official, shall submit a formal 
challenge to an individual’s eligibility to register to 
vote in an election for Federal office or to vote in 
an election for Federal office unless that challenge 
is supported by personal, first-hand knowledge re-
garding the grounds for ineligibility which is— 
‘‘(A) documented in writing; and 
‘‘(B) subject to an oath or attestation 
under penalty of perjury that the individual 
who is the subject of the challenge is ineligible 
to register to vote or vote in that election. 
‘‘(2) PROHIBITING
CHALLENGES
BASED
ON 
CERTAIN EVIDENCE.—No person, other than a State 
or local election official, shall submit a formal chal-
lenge to an individual’s eligibility to register to vote 
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in an election for Federal office or to vote in an elec-
tion for Federal office if the basis for such challenge 
is evidence consisting of— 
‘‘(A) a voter caging document or voter cag-
ing list; 
‘‘(B) an unverified match list; 
‘‘(C) an error or omission on any record or 
paper relating to any application, registration, 
or other act requisite to voting, if such error or 
omission is not material to an individual’s eligi-
bility to vote under section 2004 of the Revised 
Statutes, 
as 
amended 
(42 
U.S.C. 
1971(a)(2)(B)); or 
‘‘(D) any other evidence so designated for 
purposes of this section by the Election Assist-
ance Commission. 
‘‘(d) PENALTIES
FOR KNOWING MISCONDUCT.— 
Whoever knowingly challenges the eligibility of one or 
more individuals to register or vote or knowingly causes 
the eligibility of such individuals to be challenged in viola-
tion of this section with the intent that one or more eligi-
ble voters be disqualified, shall be fined under this title 
or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both, for each 
such violation. Each violation shall be a separate offense. 
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‘‘(e) NO EFFECT ON RELATED LAWS.—Nothing in 
this section is intended to override the protections of the 
National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 
1973gg et seq.) or to affect the Voting Rights Act of 1965 
(42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.).’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
for chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘618. Voter caging and other questionable challenges.’’. 
SEC. 3. SEVERABILITY. 
If any provision of this Act or any amendment made 
by this Act, or the application of a provision to any person 
or circumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the re-
mainder of this Act and the amendments made by this 
Act, and the application of the provisions to any person 
or circumstance, shall not be affected by the holding. 
Æ 
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