SENATE STATE GOVERNMENT, WAGERING, TOURISM & HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

ASSEMBLY, No. 3690

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  DECEMBER 7, 2023

      The Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 3690.

   As amended by the committee, this bill, designated as the “New Voter Empowerment Act,” permits any registered voter who is 17 years of age prior to the date on which a primary election for the general election is held to vote in that primary election if the registered voter attains 18 years of age on or before the day of the next succeeding general election.

   Current law permits a person who is at least 17 years of age to register to vote if the person will be at least 18 at the time of the election. However, the person is designated in the Statewide Voter Registration System as temporarily ineligible to vote until that person’s 18th birthday. This bill would permit that person to vote in a primary election notwithstanding that the person is not yet 18 years of age, as long as the person attains 18 years of age on or before the next general election. As amended by the committee,  the bill would take effect on January 1, 2026.

      As amended by the committee, Assembly Bill No. 3690 (1R) is identical to Senate Bill No. 1888 (1R).

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The amendments change the bill’s effective date to January 1, 2026.