[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2778 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2778

To amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to permit a voting 
registrar to remove an individual from the official list of registered 
    voters for elections for Federal office on the ground that the 
  individual no longer resides in the registrar's jurisdiction if the 
  individual fails to vote in any election held during 2 consecutive 
Federal election cycles, the registrar sends a notice to the individual 
at the end of the second cycle, and the individual fails to respond to 
                       the notice within 60 days.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 7, 2005

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to permit a voting 
registrar to remove an individual from the official list of registered 
    voters for elections for Federal office on the ground that the 
  individual no longer resides in the registrar's jurisdiction if the 
  individual fails to vote in any election held during 2 consecutive 
Federal election cycles, the registrar sends a notice to the individual 
at the end of the second cycle, and the individual fails to respond to 
                       the notice within 60 days.

    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 ``Common Sense in Voter Registration 
Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. PERMITTING REMOVAL OF INDIVIDUALS FAILING TO VOTE DURING 2 
              CONSECUTIVE ELECTION CYCLES AND FAILING TO RESPOND TO 
              SUBSEQUENT NOTICE FROM REGISTRAR.

    (a) Removal Permitted.--Section 8(d)(1)(B) of the National Voter 
Registration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg--6(d)(1)(B)) is amended to 
read as follows:
            ``(B)(i) has not voted or appeared to vote (and, if 
        necessary, correct the registrar's record of the registrant's 
        address) in any election for public office held in the 
        registrar's jurisdiction during any period which begins on the 
        day after the date of a regularly scheduled general election 
        for Federal office and which ends on the date of the second 
        regularly scheduled general election for Federal office held 
        after such date;
            ``(ii) has been mailed a notice described in paragraph (2) 
        by the appropriate voting registrar after the expiration of the 
        period described in clause (i); and
            ``(iii) has failed to respond to such notice prior to the 
        expiration of the 60-day period which begins on the date such 
        notice is mailed.''.
    (b) Contents of Notice.--Section 8(d)(2)(A) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
1973gg--6(d)(2)(A)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(A) If the registrant did not change his or her 
        residence, or changed residence but remained in the registrar's 
        jurisdiction, the registrant should return the card prior to 
        the expiration of the 60-day period which begins on the date 
        the notice is mailed. If the card is not returned prior to the 
        expiration of such period, the registrant's name will be 
        removed from the list of registered voters.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by this Act shall apply with respect to 
regularly scheduled general elections for Federal office beginning with 
the election scheduled to be held in November 2006.
                                 <all>