An Act To Require the Secretary of State To Automatically Register Nonregistered Persons Who Are Qualified To Vote through Records of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 1232
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: GOLDEN, McLEAN, O'NEIL, PIERCE, RYKERSON, BELLOWS, CHENETTE, MIRAMANT, FECTEAU, HICKMAN
Amends: 21-A MRSA §122-A, 21-A MRSA §129, 21-A MRSA §152, 21-A MRSA §195

Legislative Document
No. 1232
H.P. 854
House of Representatives, March 30, 2017
An Act To Require the Secretary of State To Automatically Register 
Nonregistered Persons Who Are Qualified To Vote through Records 
of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative GOLDEN of Lewiston.
Cosponsored by Representatives: McLEAN of Gorham, O'NEIL of Saco, PIERCE of 
Falmouth, RYKERSON of Kittery, Senators: BELLOWS of Kennebec, CHENETTE of York, 
MIRAMANT of Knox and Representatives: FECTEAU of Biddeford, HICKMAN of 
Winthrop.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  21-A MRSA §122-A, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 364, §4, is amended to 
read: 
§122-A.  Alternative registration procedure for participants in Address 
Confidentiality Program 
Notwithstanding sections 122 and 152 and subchapter 9, a person who is certified by 
the Secretary of State as a program participant in the Address Confidentiality Program 
pursuant to Title 5, section 90-B may register to vote using the designated address and 
voter code assigned to that person pursuant to rules adopted to implement the program.  
To register to vote, a voter must present the registrar with that voter's authorization card 
assigned to the voter pursuant to rules adopted by the Secretary of State showing that 
voter's name, voter code, designated address and certification expiration date.  The 
registrar may contact the Address Confidentiality Program administrator in the Secretary 
of State's office to determine the voter's eligibility to register in the municipality and to 
verify the electoral district in which the voter is voting for purposes of issuing an 
absentee ballot to the voter pursuant to section 753-C.  All registration records for such 
voters must be designated as confidential and kept sealed in the registrar's office.  The 
name of any voter certified as a program participant in the Address Confidentiality 
Program may not be placed on any voter list that is available for public inspection or 
copying. 
Sec. 2.  21-A MRSA §129, first ¶, as amended by PL 2011, c. 399, §11, is further 
amended to read: 
When Notwithstanding subchapter 9, when a voter's name is changed by marriage or 
other process of law, or when the voter moves within a municipality, the following 
provisions apply. 
Sec. 3.  21-A MRSA §152, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2015, c. 447, §§4 and 5, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Application.  In addition to the procedure procedures provided by section 122 and 
subchapter 9, a person may register to vote or enroll in a political party, or both, by 
completing an application that is designed by the Secretary of State.  The application 
must include, but is not limited to:  
A.  The legal name of the voter, in one of the following combinations: 
(1)  First name and last name; 
(2)  First initial, middle name and last name; or 
(3)  First name, middle name or middle initial and last name; 
B.  Residence address, including street, street number, apartment number, town and 
zip code; 
C.  Mailing address; 
D.  Date of birth; 
F.  Most recent prior residence where registered to vote, including the municipality, 
county and state, and the name under which previously registered, if changed; 
H.  Notification that failure to complete the entire application may prevent 
registration; 
J.  Date of application; 
K.  Signature of applicant; 
L.  Choice of political party if the applicant desires to enroll in a political party or an 
indication that the applicant chose not to enroll in a party; 
M.  A place for the person's current, valid Maine driver's license number, if 
applicable; or, if the applicant has no driver's license number, the last 4 digits of the 
person's social security number, if applicable; or, if the applicant has neither number, 
a place to put "none" or "not applicable"; and 
N.  A place for the applicant to respond to the questions concerning the voter's 
qualifications as required by the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002, Public Law 
107-252. 
Sec. 4.  21-A MRSA §195, as amended by PL 2009, c. 564, §6, is repealed and the 
following enacted in its place: 
§195.  Report 
The Secretary of State shall report annually by January 15th to the joint standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over voter registration matters on the 
administration of the central voter registration system and the automatic voter registration 
system established pursuant to subchapter 9. 
1.  Automatic registration efforts.  Beginning January 15, 2018, the report must 
include the following information regarding the actions taken pursuant to subchapter 9: 
A.  The number of registration records that have been transferred by source agencies; 
B.  The number of voters added to the central voter registration system because of 
registration records transferred by source agencies; 
C.  The number of voters in the central voter registration system whose information 
was updated because of registration records transferred by source agencies; 
D.  The number of registration records transferred, by source agency, that do not 
relate to individuals affirmatively identified as eligible to vote; 
E.  The number of individuals who chose to not register to vote; and 
F.  The number of voters who submitted requests to update or correct registration 
information through the system established in subchapter 9, by type of information 
updated. 
As used in this subsection, "registration record" and "source agency" have the same 
meanings as in subchapter 9. 
2.  Public access.  The report may address issues of public access to the information 
from the central voter registration system, taking into consideration the compelling state 
interests to prevent voter fraud and the potential disenfranchisement of voters and to 
ensure that voters are not discouraged from participating in the voting process. 
3.  Legislation.  The report may include suggested legislation necessary to administer 
the central voter registration system and the automatic voter registration system 
implemented pursuant to subchapter 9. The joint standing committee of the Legislature 
having jurisdiction over voter registration matters may report out legislation regarding the 
central voter registration system and the automatic voter registration system to the 
Legislature. 
Sec. 5.  21-A MRSA c. 3, sub-c. 9 is enacted to read: 
SUBCHAPTER 9 
AUTOMATIC VOTER REGISTRATION 
§231.  Registration of voters by source agencies 
1.  Definitions.  As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, 
the following terms have the following meanings. 
A.  "Bureau" means the Department of the Secretary of State, Bureau of Motor 
Vehicles. 
B.  "Proof of voter eligibility" includes age, citizenship and residency. 
C.  "Registration record" means the electronic record created by the bureau that 
contains the personal identifying information, including name, age, citizenship and 
legal residence, and proof of that information, of a person applying for a driver’s 
license or nondriver identification card. 
D.  "Source agency" means a state agency or department or other entity designated as 
a source agency pursuant to subsection 3 that, as part of the normal course of 
business of that entity, collects documents that contain personal identification 
information that provides proof of voter eligibility. 
2.  Registration by source agency.  In addition to the procedures provided in 
sections 122 and 152, an individual may be registered to vote by a source agency 
pursuant to this section. 
3.  Designation of bureau as source agency; other source agencies.  The bureau is 
designated as a source agency.  A source agency other than the bureau may be designated 
or created pursuant to this subsection. 
A.  The Secretary of State may designate another state agency or department as a 
source agency if the Secretary of State verifies that the agency or department, as part 
of the normal course of business of that agency or department, collects documents 
that provide proof of voter eligibility.  The Secretary of State may designate as source 
agencies other entities designated by Section 7 of the National Voter Registration Act 
of 1993, 52 United States Code, Section 20506, including, but not limited to, public 
or private universities or colleges, municipal and county clerk offices or entities that 
provide services to persons with disabilities, as long as those entities, as part of the 
entities' normal course of business, collect documents that provide proof of voter 
eligibility. 
B.  An entity that on January 1, 2022 is designated by Section 7 of the National Voter 
Registration Act of 1993 to provide voter registration services is designated as a 
source agency if the entity, as part of its normal course of business, collects 
documents that provide proof of voter eligibility. 
C.  The Governor may designate by executive order other state agencies that meet the 
requirements of paragraph A as source agencies. 
An agency designated as a source agency pursuant to this subsection shall follow the 
same procedures for automatic voter registration as followed by the bureau and is subject 
to the requirements of this section and rules adopted by the bureau, including 
preimplementation audit and risk assessment and ongoing audits and accuracy checks. 
4.  Federal source agencies.  The Secretary of State shall receive data from any 
federal agency that collects proof of voter eligibility and that agrees to submit personal 
identification information to the State for voter registration purposes. 
5.  Transmission of proof of voter eligibility data; opportunity to opt out.  A 
source agency that, through receipt of an application for assistance or service, including 
licensing or certification or the renewal of the assistance or service, collects proof of 
voter eligibility data shall transmit that data to the bureau.  Any document or application 
used by a source agency to collect proof of voter eligibility data must: 
A.  Contain notice that the information provided by the applicant could be used to 
register the applicant to vote and that some of the applicant's information would be 
sent to a central voter database where it would be accessible to entities other than the 
State or the source agency; and 
B.  Provide the applicant with the ability to decline to be registered to vote. 
6.  Registration of individual.  If information transferred pursuant to this section and 
section 232 indicates that an individual is not included in the central voter registration 
system and the available age, citizenship, residency and other relevant information 
reliably indicate that the individual meets the qualifications to vote in the State and is not 
otherwise ineligible to vote, the Secretary of State shall ensure that the individual is 
registered as a voter and added to the central voter registration system unless the 
individual declines to be registered to vote pursuant to subsection 5 or section 232, 
subsection 5, paragraph A. 
7.  Update of address.  If the information transferred pursuant to this section and 
section 232 indicates that an individual is already included in the central voter registration 
system and the information reliably indicates a more recent change to the individual's 
name or address, the Secretary of State shall ensure that the individual's records in the 
central voter registration system are updated accordingly. 
§232.  Collection, maintenance and use of data 
The collection, maintenance and use of data by the bureau for voter registration under 
this subchapter are governed by this section. 
1.  Application; creation of registration record.  If an individual applies for a 
driver's license or nondriver identification card from the bureau, the bureau shall scan the 
documentation provided by the individual and create a registration record for that 
individual, which must be stored electronically in the bureau's database.  The registration 
record and the accompanying documentation must be in a searchable, auditable format. 
2.  Proof of citizenship.  If an individual in the course of business with the bureau 
provides a document that incontrovertibly proves the individual is a United States citizen, 
the registration record of that individual in the bureau's database must indicate that the 
individual has fulfilled the citizenship eligibility requirement for the purpose of 
registering to vote. 
3.  Audit of data.  The Secretary of State shall audit the central voter registration 
system for quality of data prior to implementation of the voter registration system 
pursuant to this subchapter and periodically thereafter conduct regular audits and random 
checks to ensure accuracy and reliability of the data. 
4.  Sharing of certain information prohibited; penalty.  The information retained 
by the bureau regarding citizenship status or country of origin may not be shared with any 
federal, state or local government agency except as allowed by this subchapter. Violation 
of this subsection is a Class E crime. 
5.  Electronic transmission of voter registration data and notice.  If, based on an 
individual's registration record, that individual is determined to be eligible to vote in this 
State, the bureau shall transmit electronically the individual's registration record to 
election officials in a format that may be reviewed by election officials and converted and 
uploaded into the central voter registration system. The bureau also shall transmit for 
review by election officials any changes to the address or name of an individual in the 
central voter registration system to ensure that the voting lists are kept current. 
Upon receiving the registration record, an election official shall notify the individual that 
the information provided by the individual will be used to register the individual to vote, 
making some of that individual's information accessible to entities other than the State or 
the election official, and notify the individual of the process to: 
A.  Decline being registered as a voter; and 
B.  Adopt a political party affiliation. 
Any notification must comply with the language requirements of Section 203 of the 
federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, 52 United States Code, Section 10503. 
If an individual notified under this subsection does not decline to be registered as a voter 
within 21 calendar days after the election official issues the notification, the individual's 
registration record submitted under this subsection must be considered a completed 
registration. 
§233.  Voluntary exclusion from voter list 
1.  Designation of individuals who request to opt out.  The Secretary of State shall 
ensure that, upon receipt and verification of an individual's request to opt out of voter 
registration, the individual's name and registration record are designated as unregistered, 
unless the voter consents to registration. This subsection does not preclude an individual 
who has previously declined voter registration from subsequently registering to vote. 
2.  Provision of records for permitted use only.  The Secretary of State shall ensure 
that election officials do not provide the registration record of an individual who has 
opted out of voter registration to a 3rd party for any purpose other than the compilation of 
a jury list. 
§234.  Privacy and security standards 
The Secretary of State periodically shall review privacy and security measures 
applied to the central voter registration system and the registration records and, as 
provided in this section, implement standards and procedures to further safeguard the 
confidentiality, integrity and security of the information collected, maintained, received, 
transmitted or used pursuant to this subchapter, referred to in this section as "the data." 
1.  Security.  All source agencies and the Secretary of State shall work individually 
and jointly to: 
A.  Ensure the confidentiality, integrity and security of the data; 
B.  Identify and protect against any threats to the confidentiality, integrity and 
security of the data, including impermissible uses and disclosures; 
C.  Train all persons who handle or have access to the data regarding implementation 
of the security protocols established; 
D.  Conduct regular audits, either through a neutral 3rd party or the State Auditor, 
and risk management assessments and pursue measures that are indicated as 
necessary; 
E.  Provide the highest level of physical security to facilities, computers and other 
sensitive equipment on which the data is stored; 
F.  Employ available software to detect anomalies and irregularities; 
G.  Implement measures to ensure against unauthorized access or changes in data 
through the process of transmitting data from one agency to another; and 
H.  Develop procedures to respond immediately to a breach of the security of the data 
and to appropriately inform the public and other necessary parties of the breach and 
consequences of that breach. 
2.  Privacy.  The Secretary of State shall develop, publish and enforce a privacy 
policy with respect to the central voter registration system and the data that: 
A.  Specifies each class of internal users that have authorized access to the central 
voter registration system, specifying for each class the permissions and levels of 
access to be granted, and setting forth other safeguards to protect the privacy of the 
information in the central voter registration system; 
B.  Prohibits public disclosure of any information not necessary for voter registration; 
C.  Protects against public disclosure of social security numbers, in whole or in part, 
driver's license numbers, nondriver identification card numbers and signatures; 
D.  Prohibits public disclosure of an individual's decision not to register to vote; 
E.  Prohibits agencies from transmitting to election officials information other than 
that required for voter registration or specified information relevant to the 
administration of elections, such as language preference and demographic 
information; and 
F.  Prohibits the disclosure of information relating to persons in categories designated 
as confidential by federal or state law, including victims of domestic violence or 
stalking, prosecutors and law enforcement personnel and participants in a witness 
protection program. 
3.  Records retention.  The Secretary of State shall establish standards and 
procedures to maintain all election records required for purposes of this subchapter. The 
registration record of an individual who has been identified as ineligible to vote within 
the State or whose name has been removed from the central voter registration system due 
to ineligibility must be maintained and kept available until at least the date of the 2nd 
general election that occurs after the date that the individual was identified as ineligible. 
§235.  Protection against liability of individuals on basis of information transferred 
If an individual who is ineligible to vote is registered to vote in error through the 
operation of this subchapter, notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, that 
individual may not be held criminally or civilly responsible unless that individual 
willfully and knowingly took affirmative steps to register to vote knowing that that 
individual was ineligible to vote or to register to vote. 
§236.  Protections against misuse of information 
1.  Restriction on use of registration records.  A person may not use the central 
voter registration system for any purpose other than voter registration, election 
administration, the enforcement of laws against election crimes or as allowed under 
section 196-A. 
2.  Restriction on use of information.  Information relating to an individual's 
absence from the central voter registration system or an individual's declining to supply 
information for voter registration purposes at a source agency is not a public record as 
defined in Title 1, section 402 and may not be disclosed to the public or used for any 
purpose other than voter registration, election administration or the enforcement of laws 
against election crimes. 
§237.  Nondiscrimination 
A person acting under color of law may not discriminate against an individual on the 
basis of the individual's absence from the central voter registration system, the 
information supplied by the individual for voter registration purposes at a source agency 
or the individual's declining to supply such information, except as required to administer 
elections or enforce the laws against election crimes. 
§238.  Rules 
The Secretary of State may adopt rules to implement this subchapter. Rules adopted 
pursuant to this section are major substantive rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A. 
§239.  Rule of construction 
1.  No change to authority to maintain voting lists.  This subchapter may not be 
construed to interfere with any election official's authority or obligation, under state or 
federal law, to: 
A.  Determine whether an individual is qualified to be a voter; or 
B.  Conduct regular, nondiscriminatory voting list maintenance designed to ensure 
that persons who are ineligible to vote are not reflected as voters in the central voter 
registration system. 
2.  Right to opt out.  This subchapter may not be construed to interfere with the right 
of an individual to decline for any reason to be registered to vote. 
SUMMARY 
This bill establishes a method of automatically registering eligible individuals to vote.  
The Department of the Secretary of State, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, when receiving any 
documentation from an individual doing business with the bureau, including applying for 
or renewing a driver's license or nondriver identification card, is required to scan and 
electronically store the documentation provided by the applicant.  If the documentation 
provides proof of eligibility to vote, including citizenship, age and residency, that 
individual is added to the central voter registration system and relevant information is 
transmitted to election officials unless the individual, at the time of the collection of the 
documentation, chooses not to be registered to vote. 
An application or document used to collect information that may be used to register 
an individual must contain a notice that the individual's information may be used to 
register that individual to vote, meaning that the information would be available by 
persons other than the State or election officials.  An election official must provide the 
same notice to an individual upon receipt of the registration record from the Bureau of 
Motor Vehicles and also must inform the individual of the ability to choose not to be 
registered to vote and to pick a party affiliation. If the individual fails to respond within 
days, the individual is considered a registered voter. 
The Secretary of State and the Governor are allowed to designate other state agencies 
and departments and public and private entities, such as colleges and municipal clerk 
offices, as so-called source agencies that are allowed to submit registration information to 
the bureau for inclusion in the central voter registration system, but only if those 
agencies, as part of their normal course of business, collect information that provides 
proof of eligibility to vote.  Beginning in 2022, an entity that is designated under the 
National Voter Registration Act of 1993 as a voter-registration agency that collects 
information that provides proof of voter eligibility is designated a source agency.  A 
source agency is required to comply with the same restrictions regarding sharing and use 
of documentation as the bureau. 
Information from a source agency may also be used to update an individual's voter 
registration.