ASSEMBLY STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

ASSEMBLY, No. 3823

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  MAY 12, 2022

      The Assembly State and Local Government Committee reports favorably Assembly Bill No. 3823.

      This bill revises voter roll and election worker training processes, exempts election worker compensation from taxation, and removes boards of elections staff salaries from the two percent cap on the increase in expenditures.

      Under current law, once per month, the health officer or other officer in charge of records of death in each municipality files lists of all persons 18 years of age or older who have died with the commissioner of registration for the county in which the municipality is located.  Also, election workers are required to attend an in-person instructional session at least once every two years.  Additionally, staff salaries for the county board of elections are not exempt from the two percent cap on increase in expenditures for county entities.  Finally, election worker compensation is included in gross income for the purposes of taxation.

      This bill requires that for the two months immediately preceding a primary or general election, the officer in charge of records of death would file bi-weekly reports to the commissioner of registration.  The commissioner of registration would then have 10 days to investigate the list and remove any deceased voter from the voter rolls.

      This bill also requires the Secretary of State to enter into an agreement with the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC).  ERIC is a non-profit organization that assists states to improve the accuracy of each state’s voter rolls and increase access to voter registration for all eligible citizens. ERIC is governed and managed by the states who choose to join.  ERIC currently includes 31 member states and the District of Columbia.  The State would share voter registration information, and information in the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission database, with ERIC for the purposes of determining whether a voter is registered in more than one state and for the maintenance of the Statewide voter registration system.  Membership in ERIC includes a $25,000 initial fee and annual fees ranging from approximately $16,000 to approximately $74,000, depending on a formula that includes citizen voting age population as a factor.

      This bill also clarifies that instructional sessions for election workers be conducted in person.  A county board of elections may also conduct instructional sessions to district board members remotely, by electronic means.  The county boards of elections would implement the procedures for conducting a remote session, which would need to be approved by the Secretary of State.  The procedures would need to be reviewed and approved once every two years.

      This bill also updates the definition of “election expenses” that are exempt from the two percent cap on increase in expenditures.  The update removes the exemption of staff salaries for a county board of elections from the definition of “election expenses,” allowing staff salaries to exceed the two percent cap.

      This bill also exempts election worker compensation from gross income taxation.