Title: Restoring Faith in Our Elections Act
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Restoring Faith in Our Elections Act
This bill requires individuals who are registering to vote in a federal election to provide their full Social Security number on the voter registration application. Currently, applicants must provide their driver's license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. Further, states must use Social Security numbers to verify the identification of each individual who casts a ballot in a federal election.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8781 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8781

   To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require individuals 
applying to register to vote in elections for Federal office to provide 
  a complete Social Security number with the application, to require 
       States to use Social Security numbers to cross-check the 
identifications of individuals who vote in elections for Federal office 
in the State with the identifications of individuals who are registered 
           to vote in such elections, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 19, 2020

  Mr. Banks introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                   Committee on House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require individuals 
applying to register to vote in elections for Federal office to provide 
  a complete Social Security number with the application, to require 
       States to use Social Security numbers to cross-check the 
identifications of individuals who vote in elections for Federal office 
in the State with the identifications of individuals who are registered 
           to vote in such elections, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Restoring Faith in Our Elections 
Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIRING APPLICANTS FOR VOTER REGISTRATION TO PROVIDE FULL 
              SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS.

    (a) Requirement.--Section 303(a)(5)(A) of the Help America Vote Act 
of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21083(a)(5)(A)) is amended to read as follows:
                    ``(A) Requiring applicants to provide full social 
                security number.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
                of law, an application for voter registration for an 
                election for Federal office may not be accepted or 
                processed by a State unless the application includes 
                the applicant's full Social Security number.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment Relating to Certain Voters Registering by 
Mail.--Section 303(b)(3)(B)(i) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 
21083(b)(3)(B)(i)) is amended by striking ``either--'' and all that 
follows through ``; and'' and inserting ``the individual's full Social 
Security number; and''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment Relating to Waiver of Privacy Act.--
Section 303(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21083(c)) is amended to read as 
follows:
    ``(c) Permitted Use of Social Security Numbers.--Section 7 of the 
Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a note) does not apply to the use of a 
Social Security number under subsection (a)(5)(A) or subsection 
(b)(3)(B)(i).''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to elections held in 2022 or any succeeding year.

SEC. 3. USE OF SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS TO CROSS-CHECK IDENTIFICATIONS 
              OF INDIVIDUALS CASTING BALLOTS IN ELECTIONS WITH 
              INDIVIDUALS REGISTERED TO VOTE IN ELECTIONS.

    (a) Requiring Cross-Check of Identifications.--Title III of the 
Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating sections 304 and 305 as sections 305 
        and 306; and
            (2) by inserting after section 303 the following new 
        section:

``SEC. 304. USE OF SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS TO CROSS-CHECK 
              IDENTIFICATIONS OF INDIVIDUALS CASTING BALLOTS IN AN 
              ELECTION WITH INDIVIDUALS REGISTERED TO VOTE IN THE 
              ELECTION.

    ``(a) Requirement.--Immediately upon the closing of the polls in an 
election for Federal office, each State shall verify the identification 
of each individual who cast a ballot in the election by carrying out a 
cross-check of the individual's identification with the individual's 
identification in the official list of individuals who are registered 
to vote in the election, using the individual's full Social Security 
number as the method for determining the individual's identification.
    ``(b) Report to Congress.--Not later than 7 days after the closing 
of the polls in an election for Federal office, the State shall submit 
to the Committee on House Administration of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Rules and Administration of the 
Senate a report on the State's compliance with subsection (a), and 
shall include in the report--
            ``(1) the percentage of individuals who cast votes in the 
        election whose identifications were verified by the State under 
        such subsection; and
            ``(2) the number of individuals who cast votes in the 
        election, or who attempted to cast votes in the election, whose 
        identifications could not be verified by the State under such 
        subsection.
    ``(c) Effective Date.--This section shall apply with respect to 
elections held in 2022 or any succeeding year.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment Relating to Enforcement.--Section 401 of 
such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ``and 303'' and 
inserting ``303, and 304''.
    (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of such Act is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating the items relating to sections 304 and 
        305 as relating to sections 305 and 306; and
            (2) by inserting after the item relating to section 303 the 
        following:

``Sec. 304. Use of Social Security numbers to cross-check 
                            identifications of individuals casting 
                            ballots in an election with individuals 
                            registered to vote in the election.''.
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