SENATE BUDGET AND APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

[First Reprint]

SENATE, No. 1636

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  FEBRUARY 3, 2025

      The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 1636 (1R).

      As amended, this bill revises the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) voter registration procedures.

     Section 1 of the bill, as amended by the committee, specifies that a person registers to vote by engaging in a voter registration transaction, as processed by a county commissioner of registration, pursuant to current law.

     Section 2 of the bill allows the transfer of information on a newly registered voter received electronically by the MVC into the Statewide voter registration system.

     Section 3 of the bill, as amended by the committee, directs the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services to automatically transmit voter registration information to the Secretary of State for each person who applies to the New Jersey Medical Assistance and Health Services Program who is eligible to vote, but does not require external verification of citizenship prior to transmitting voter registration information. The Department of Corrections, the Secretary of State, and the MVC must coordinate to ensure that eligible individuals scheduled to be released from incarceration imposed as a sentence for a crime and who are provided a non-driver identification card in anticipation of release are also provided voter registration opportunities as part of the application for such non-driver identification card, as long as the incarcerated individual can provide the street address where they will reside upon release. An otherwise eligible individual would not be registered to vote until the person’s release from incarceration.  The notices and procedures may be modified by the Secretary of State to allow for the processing of registration information from an otherwise eligible person and to reflect that an otherwise eligible person must not be registered to vote until the person’s release from incarceration. The Secretary of State and the Department of Corrections must jointly ensure that no person is registered to vote until the person has been released from incarceration.

     Section 4 of the bill, as amended by the committee, determines that changes to residence information are permitted to be received, processed, and updated by the MVC in addition to the commissioner, municipal clerk, the Secretary of State, and any other State agency that has adopted automatic voter registration procedures, for voter registration purposes.

     Section 5 of the bill, as amended by the committee, determines that changes to name information are permitted to be received and processed by the MVC and any other State agency that has adopted automatic voter registration procedures, for voter registration purposes.

     Section 6 of the bill, as amended by the committee, removes the requirement for county commissioners of registration to send a voter registration applicant a confirmation notice upon changing political parties.  The section directs the MVC to automatically transfer information to the Secretary of State about each person who approaches the MVC for a motor vehicle driver’s license or similar license who is not registered to vote, is of age, and is a citizen.  If the person is determined to be eligible to vote by the Secretary of State, the secretary will transmit the information to the appropriate county commissioner of registration who will register the person to vote and send a notice to the person by mail confirming the registration.  The notice will include a form with prepaid postage by which the person may declare a political party affiliation, request mail-in ballots until indicated otherwise, or decline to be registered to vote.  The section also changes the type of license application for which the MVC will transmit voter registration information of non-voters to the Secretary of State from a motor vehicle driver’s license, an examination permit, a probationary driver’s license, or a non-driver identification card to a REAL ID or an identification card.

     Section 6, as amended by the committee, also requires the MVC to include any available information concerning the applicant’s citizenship status, not just the status itself, with the voter application information transmitted to the Secretary of State.  The section also determines that information will not be transmitted by the MVC to the Secretary of State for those who provide any document indicating that they are not a citizen during the transition of business with the MVC.

     Section 6, as amended by the committee, requires that the letter sent to a person who has been automatically registered to vote during the course of their business with the MVC include an option to not only decline their voter registration, but request that their registration be removed from the Statewide voter registration system, and directs the appropriate county commissioner of registration to do so.  The section clarifies that a request to decline automatic voter registration will remain confidential unless it is required to be revealed by other laws, rules, regulations, a lawful court order, or a subpoena.

     Section 6, as amended by the committee, also requires that the notice will include the required information in English and Spanish, as well as any additional language which is the primary language of five percent or more of the registered voters in the county where the notice is mailed.

     Section 6, as amended by the committee, requires the Secretary of State to transmit automatic voter registration information to the appropriate county commissioner of registration after the receipt of information by the MVC. The section also reinstates the requirement that voter registration information from an application received online for the renewal of a motor vehicle driver's license or non-driver identification card will be collected and transmitted electronically to the Secretary of State upon the implementation by the Secretary of State of online voter registration.

     Section 6, as amended by the committee, also directs the MVC to transmit to the Secretary of State the applicant’s name and address for every application for a motor vehicle driver’s license, or similar license, and each related update, renewal, or change of address, by an applicant who is already registered to vote in the State of New Jersey for the purpose of maintaining current information on the applicant.  If the Secretary of State finds that the name or address provided by the MVC is different than the name or address on the voter’s registration record, the secretary will transmit the updated name or address to the appropriate county commissioner of registration.  A notice of the change and a postage paid preaddressed return form by which the person may verify or correct the information will be sent to the person.  If the person returns the notice and indicates that the change to the person’s registration record was an error, the appropriate county commissioner of registration will immediately correct the person’s previously updated information in the statewide voter registration system.

     Section 6, as amended by the committee, provides that nothing in this section would be construed to require the Motor Vehicle Commission to maintain or validate official records of voter registration.  This section specifies that a person would not be registered to vote until their information has been received and processed by a county commissioner of registration, provided that such registration will be deemed effective as of the date of the person’s application with the Motor Vehicle Commission.  The voter registration application must require an applicant to either affirmatively select or affirmatively decline voter registration as a necessary condition to complete the application.

     Section 9 of the bill, as amended by the committee, provides that the bill would take effect on January 1, 2027.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amendments:

      Remove the external citizenship verification requirement for those being registered to vote via the New Jersey Medical Assistance and Health Services Program.

      Allow incarcerated individuals who are anticipating release and are applying for a non-driver identification card to also register to vote in anticipation of their release, but requires the individual to provide their next address where they will reside upon their release.

      Remove the requirement for the Secretary of State to develop procedures for processing electronic records received from an agency without a digitized image of the applicant’s signature, consequently, requiring an applicant’s signature to register them to vote. 

      Allow change of residence and change of name information to be received and processed by State agencies other than the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) that participate in automatic voter registration.

      Remove the requirement for county commissioners of registration to send a voter registration applicant a confirmation notice upon changing political parties.

      Change the type of license application for which the Chief of the MVC will transmit voter registration information to the Secretary of State for non-voters from a motor vehicle driver’s license, an examination permit, a probationary driver’s license, or a non-driver identification card to a REAL ID or an identification card.

      Require the MVC to include any available information concerning the applicant’s citizenship status, not just the status itself, with the voter application information transmitted to the Secretary of State.

      Determine that information will not be transmitted by the MVC to the Secretary of State for those who provide any document indicating that they are not a citizen during the transition of business with the MVC.

      Remove the requirement for the Secretary of State and Chief Administrator of MVC to jointly determine whether certain documents are acceptable in proving citizenship.

      Require that the letter sent to a person who has been automatically registered to vote during the course of their business with the MVC include an option to request that their registration be removed from the Statewide voter registration system.

      Clarify that the request to decline automatic voter registration will remain confidential unless it is required to be revealed by other laws, rules, regulations, a lawful court order, or a subpoena.

      Remove the requirement for the notice of automatic voter registration to include information on procedures for the prevention of street address disclosure.

      Direct county commissioners of registration to remove a person from the Statewide voter registration system at their request as indicated on their returned automatic voter registration notice.

      Remove the determination that an individual’s form declining to be automatically registered to vote is not considered a government record pursuant to the open public records act or common law access.

      Require the Secretary of State to transmit automatic voter registration information to the appropriate county commissioner of registration after receipt of information from the Chief of the MVC.

      Require voter registration information received via an online renewal of a license or non-driver identification card to be transmitted to the Secretary of State once the online voter registration system is propped up by the Secretary of State.

      Remove the requirement for the Secretary of State to transmit change of address information to both county commissioners of registration in the county the voter is moving from and the county the voter is moving to.

      Remove the determination that a person receives an affirmative defense to prosecution if they are ineligible to register to vote, but are registered under the provisions of the bill, causing the person to either attempt to vote or to successfully do so.

      Change the effective date to January 1, 2027.

FISCAL IMPACT:

      The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) estimates that the bill may increase annual State and county expenditures, owing to potential technological upgrades and administrative workload increases that may be necessary to implement the bill’s changes to automatic voter registration procedures.

      The OLS notes that any upgrades to the Statewide voter registration system and the avenues utilized for interdepartmental electronic communications are indeterminate and will depend on the sufficiency of current systems to meet the workload requirements of the bill.