[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 18 (Wednesday, January 31, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S311]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. PADILLA (for himself, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Butler, Mr. Welch, 
        Mr. Whitehouse, Ms. Warren, Mr. Bennet, Ms. Cortez Masto, Ms. 
        Hirono, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Schatz, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. 
        Durbin, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Kaine, and Mr. Booker):
  S. 3712. A bill to amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 
to treat United States Citizenship and Immigration Services field 
offices as voter registration agencies, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. PADILLA. Madam President, I rise to introduce the INVITE Act.
  This legislation would require USCIS field offices to offer voter 
registration assistance at naturalization ceremonies to ensure that 
newly naturalized United States citizens are able to fully participate 
in our democratic process.
  This legislation would designate USCIS field offices as voter 
registration agencies under the National Voter Registration Act and 
require them to support new citizens in registering to vote, including 
providing the registration application, offering assistance in 
completing the application, and returning the application to the State 
election official or agency.
  It would significantly expand the agency's voter registration efforts 
to encompass all new United States citizens, not just those naturalized 
through USCIS administrative ceremonies.
  USCIS policy currently only requires the agency to ensure that voter 
registration forms are distributed to new United States citizens at 
their naturalization ceremonies--not returned to the appropriate State 
election agency--and also fails to reach new United States citizens who 
are naturalized at judicial ceremonies or without a formal ceremony.
  During the recent midterm elections, just 61 percent of all 
naturalized citizens were registered to vote, compared to 70 percent of 
native-born Americans, due in part to distinct obstacles, such as 
language barriers, that new citizens face.
  The National Voter Registration Act has proven to be an effective 
tool for voter registration, with departments of motor vehicles 
accounting for almost 40 million new voter registration applications 
from 2018 to 2022.
  USCIS, like the other agencies designated under the National Voter 
Registration Act, interacts with a significant population of eligible 
but unregistered voters. In 2022, the agency naturalized more than 
900,000 new U.S. citizens.
  New United States citizens deserve to be supported as they exercise 
their right to political participation, as guaranteed by our 
Constitution.

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