[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 528 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 528
To amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to modify the
requirements for voter mail registration and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 14, 2001
Mr. Bond introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to modify the
requirements for voter mail registration 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 ``Safeguard the Vote Act''.
SEC. 2. MAIL REGISTRATION.
(a) Requirement for First-Time Voters To Present Identification.--
Section 6(c)(1) of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42
U.S.C. 1973gg-4(c)(1)) is amended by striking ``a State may by law
require a person to vote in person if'' and inserting ``a State shall
by law require a person to vote in person and present a picture
identification if''.
(b) Removal of Voters in Response to Undelivered Notices.--
(1) In general.--Section 6(d) of the National Voter
Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-4(d)) is amended by
striking ``may proceed'' and all that follows through the end
and inserting the following: ``shall--
``(1) proceed in accordance with section 8(d); or
``(2) if provided for under State law, remove the name of
the registrant from the official list of eligible voters in
elections for Federal office provided that reasonable
safeguards are available to prevent the removal of an eligible
voter.''.
(2) Conforming amendments.--
(A) Section 8(a)(3)(C) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
1973gg-6(a)(3)(C)) is amended by inserting ``or section
6(d)(2)'' after ``paragraph (4)''.
(B) Section 8(c)(2)(B) of such Act (42 U.S.C.
1973gg-6(c)(2)(B)) is amended by inserting ``or section
6(d)(2)'' after ``subsection (a)''.
(c) Contents of Mail Voter Registration Form.--Section 9(b)(3) of
the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-7(b)(3))
is amended to read as follows:
``(3) may include a requirement for notarization or other
formal authentication as each State may by law require; and''.
SEC. 3. MAINTENANCE OF ACCURATE LIST OF ELIGIBLE VOTERS.
(a) Required Voter Removal Program.--Section 8(a) of the National
Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-(6)(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(7) conduct a program to determine whether the number of
eligible voters in any jurisdiction is less than the number of
eligible voters on the official list for such jurisdiction and,
if such determination is made, remove the names of ineligible
voters from such list in accordance with paragraph (4).''.
(b) Identification Required.--Section 8(e) of the National Voter
Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-6(e)) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(4) Any requirement under this section to make an oral or written
affirmation regarding the address of a registrant shall include a
requirement that such registrant present picture identification as part
of such affirmation.''.
(c) Notification of Felony Convictions.--Section 8(g) of the
National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-6(g)) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(6) The Attorney General shall provide, upon request of any chief
State election official, expedited access to applicable records
regarding felony convictions of individuals in order to determine if an
individual is eligible to vote under any applicable State law.''.
(d) Additional Penalty for Conspiracy.--Section 12(2) of the
National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-(10)(2)) is
amended--
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking
``process, by'' and inserting ``process'';
(2) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``or knowingly and
willfully conspires with another person to deprive, defraud, or
attempt to deprive or defraud the residents of a State of a
fair and impartially conducted election process, by'' before
``the procurement''; and
(3) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``by'' before ``the
procurement''.
SEC. 4. PENALTIES UNDER VOTING RIGHTS ACT.
(a) Increased Penalties.--Subsections (c) and (e)(1) of section 11
of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973i) are each amended by
striking ``$10,000'' and inserting ``$30,000''.
(b) Misrepresentation of Eligibility.--Section 11(c) of the Voting
Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973i(c)) is amended by inserting ``or
gives false information as to the individual's status as a convicted
felon'' after ``voting district''.
SEC. 5. VOTER ROLL COORDINATION DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.
(a) Demonstration Project Established.--The Federal Election
Commission shall establish a demonstration project for the purpose of
determining the feasibility and advisability of requiring coordination
of the official list of registered voters and certain State records to
ensure--
(1) such list is accurate; and
(2) that eligible voters are not improperly removed from
the official list.
(b) Project.--
(1) In general.--The project conducted under this section
shall require a State to maintain accurate records regarding
individuals eligible to vote in the project area by
coordinating--
(A) State records of--
(i) individuals registered to vote with
respect to elections for Federal office through
the appropriate State motor vehicle authority
under section 5 of the National Voter
Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg-3);
(ii) deaths; and
(iii) individuals convicted of a felony;
with
(B) the official list of the appropriate
jurisdiction of individuals registered, and otherwise
eligible, to vote in such elections.
(2) Study.--In conjunction with the demonstration project
under this subsection, the Federal Election Commission shall
conduct a study of--
(A) the current practices and methods of voting
jurisdictions used to maintain official lists of
registered voters; and
(B) reasons for any failure of such practices and
methods to prevent voting fraud or inaccurate lists.
(c) Project Area and Duration.--
(1) Project area.--The Federal Election Commission shall
implement the project in the voting jurisdictions of St. Louis
County, Missouri, and St. Louis City, Missouri.
(2) Duration.--The project conducted under this section
shall be implemented for a period ending on the date of the
next general election for the office of President and Vice
President.
(d) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the completion of the
demonstration project, the Federal Election Commission shall submit a
report to Congress on the demonstration project and study conducted
under subsection (b) together with such recommendations as the Federal
Election Commission determines appropriate--
(1) regarding resources, technology, and personnel
necessary for maintenance of accurate records; and
(2) legislative and administrative action, including the
feasibility of national standards.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.
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