[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 115 (Wednesday, July 22, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1108]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CALLING FOR DEBATE AND VOTE ON LEGISLATION TO REPAIR DAMAGE TO VOTING 
                               RIGHTS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 22, 2015

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I call upon House Speaker Boehner to 
bring legislation intended to protect the right to vote of all 
Americans to the floor for debate and vote in advance of the 50th 
anniversary of the landmark Voting Rights Act signed by President 
Lyndon Johnson on August 6, 1965.
  This action is long overdue.
  It has been more than two years since the Supreme Court decided 
Shelby County v. Holder, 570 U.S. 193 (2013), which invalidated Section 
4(b) of the Voting Rights Act and paralyzed the application of the 
Act's Section 5 preclearance requirements, which protect minority 
voting rights where voter discrimination has historically been the 
worst.
  In the 49 years since its passage in 1965, the Voting Rights Act has 
safeguarded the right of Americans to vote and stood as an obstacle to 
many of the more egregious attempts by certain states and local 
jurisdictions to game the system by passing discriminatory changes to 
their election laws and administrative policies.
  In signing the Voting Rights Act on August 6, 1965, President Lyndon 
Johnson said:

       The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by 
     man for breaking down injustice and destroying the terrible 
     walls which imprison men because they are different from 
     other men.

  Although much progress has been made there is still much work to be 
done in order to prevent systemic voter suppression and discrimination 
within our communities and we must remain ever vigilant and oppose 
schemes that will abridge or dilute the precious right to vote.
  Since 1982, Section 5 has stopped more than 1,000 discriminatory 
voting changes in their tracks, including 107 discriminatory changes in 
Texas.
  In the aftermath of the Shelby decision, I was a member of the 
working group led by Congressman Jim Clyburn of South Carolina that was 
tasked with sharing ideas, making recommendations, and crafting and 
drafting the legislation that would repair the damage done to the 
Voting Rights Act by the Supreme Court decision and capable of winning 
majorities in the House and Senate and the signature of the President.
  That effort resulted in the Voting Rights Amendments Act, (H.R. 3899 
and H.R. 885) of which I am an original co-sponsor, which repairs the 
damage done to the Voting Rights Act by the Supreme Court decision.
  This legislation replaces the old `static' coverage formula with a 
new dynamic coverage formula, or `rolling trigger,' which effectively 
gives the legislation nationwide reach because any state and any 
jurisdiction in any state potentially is subject to being covered if 
the requisite number of violations are found to have been committed.
  I am also a sponsor of H.R. 2867, the Voting Rights Advancement Act 
of 2015, a bill that restores and advances the Voting Rights Act of 
1965 by providing a modern day coverage test that will extend federal 
oversight to jurisdictions which have a history of voter suppression 
and protects vulnerable communities from discriminatory voting 
practices.
  I am also a sponsor of H.R. 12, the Voter Empowerment Act of 2015, 
which protects voters from suppression, deception, and other forms of 
disenfranchisement by modernizing voter registration, promoting access 
to voting for individuals with disabilities, and protecting the ability 
of individuals to exercise the right to vote in elections for federal 
office.
  For millions of Americans, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 is sacred 
treasure, earned by the sweat and toil and tears and blood of ordinary 
Americans who showed the world it was possible to accomplish 
extraordinary things.
  The Voting Rights Act is needed as much today to prevent another 
epidemic of voting disenfranchisement as Dr. Salk's vaccine is still 
needed to prevent another polio epidemic.
  I again call upon Speaker Boehner to bring H.R. 2867, the Voting 
Rights Advancement Act of 2015, and H.R. 12, Voter Empowerment Act of 
2015, to the floor for a vote before August 6, the 50th anniversary of 
the landmark Voting Rights Act signed by President Lyndon Johnson and 
three weeks before President Johnson's 107th birthday.

                          ____________________