S4838

An Act requiring citizenship verification to register to vote in New Jersey elections and supplementing Title 19 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 4 of P.L.1994, c.182 (C.39:2-3.2), chapter 31 of Title 19 of the Revised Statutes, or any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a county commissioner of registration shall not register an individual to vote in any State or local election, and no registered voter shall vote in a State or local election, until the commissioner has confirmed that the individual or voter, as the case may be, is a citizen of the United States.

b. The Secretary of State shall negotiate and enter into an agreement with the United States Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies, as appropriate, in order to facilitate access to the systems and databases necessary to conduct the citizenship verification required pursuant to subsection a. of this section, provided that such systems and databases are used only for this purpose or for those otherwise provided by this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

c. The Secretary of State shall establish appropriate data sharing and privacy guidelines to ensure that any information retrieved from a federal system or database and any information provided by an individual for the purpose of registering to vote under the provisions of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), shall not be shared or publicly disclosed for any other purpose.

2. a. When a commissioner of registration receives an application to register to vote, other than an application to register to vote only in federal elections on a form produced by the United States Election Assistance Commission, the commissioner shall undertake a review to verify that the individual making the application is a citizen of the United States. In conducting such review, the commissioner shall utilize:

(1) Motor Vehicle Commission records, including transactions involving the issuance or renewal of a New Jersey driver’s license, a New Jersey REAL ID identification card or license issued in accordance with the federal “REAL ID Act of 2005,” 49 U.S.C. s.30301, or an identification card issued pursuant to P.L.1980, c.47 (C.39:3-29.2 et seq.);

(2) information provided by other county commissioners of registration, State agencies, or other states;

(3) information available from a federal agency via a system or database to which the State has access pursuant to an agreement entered into under section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill); and

(4) any other information from a government entity that is publicly available.

b. If a county commissioner of registration is unable to verify the citizenship of an individual making an application to register to vote, the individual’s voter registration shall be withheld pending review. The commissioner shall provide the individual with notice and an opportunity to provide satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship. Written notice shall be provided by mail delivered to the address reflected in the voter registration application, shall specify the reason for initiating the review, and shall identify the information that is required of the individual to verify the individual’s eligibility to vote in the respective county. The individual shall have 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of such notice to provide the required information to the commissioner.

If the individual provides the required information in the required time, then the commissioner shall register the individual to vote in the appropriate county. An individual who satisfies the requirements of this section and is subsequently registered to vote shall not be subject to review pursuant to this section for one year following registration.

If the individual is unable to provide satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship, or fails to respond in the required time, the individual shall not be registered to vote in State and local elections. However, nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability of an individual to register and to vote in federal elections.

c. For the purposes of this section, satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship shall include the following:

(1) The number of the individual’s driver’s license non-driver identification card, examination permit, probationary driver’s license, REAL ID license, or identification card issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission or the equivalent governmental agency of another state within the United States if the agency indicates on the individual’s driver’s license or non-driver identification card that the individual has provided satisfactory proof of United States citizenship;

(2) A legible photocopy of the individual’s birth certificate that verifies citizenship to the satisfaction of the county commissioner of registration;

(3) A legible photocopy of pertinent pages of the individual’s United States passport identifying the individual and the individual’s passport number, or presentation to the county commissioner of registration of the applicant’s United States passport;

(4) A presentation to the county commissioner of registration of the individual’s United States naturalization documents or the number of the certificate of naturalization. If only the number of the certificate of naturalization is provided, the individual shall not be included in the State and local election voter rolls until the number of the certificate of naturalization is verified with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services by the county commissioner of registration;

(5) Other documents or methods of proof that are established pursuant to the “Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986” (8 U.S.C. s.1101 et seq.); or

(6) The individual’s Bureau of Indian Affairs card number, tribal treaty card number, or tribal enrollment number.

3. a. In addition to any measures undertaken to maintain and update the list of registered voters in each county and the Statewide voter registration system pursuant to chapter 31 of Title 19 of the Revised Statutes, the county commissioner of registration in each county shall audit the county’s list of registered voters twice per year to ensure that all registered voters are citizens of the United States. In conducting such audits, the commissioner shall utilize:

(2) information provided by other county commissioners of registration, State agencies, or other states;

(4) any other information from a government entity that is publicly available.

b. Each county commissioner of registration shall, in each calendar year, complete the first audit of the year by April 1 and the second audit of the year by September 1.

c. If the commissioner cannot confirm through the information available that a voter is a citizen of the United States, then the commissioner shall place the registered voter under review and provide the registered voter with notice and an opportunity to provide satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship.

Written notice shall be provided by mail delivered to the address reflected in the voter’s file, shall specify the reason for initiating the review of the voter’s file, and shall identify the information that is required of the voter to verify that the voter is eligible to vote in the respective county. The voter shall have 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of such notice to provide the required information to the commissioner.

If the individual provides the required information in the required time, then the commissioner shall release the voter’s file from review, and the voter shall be authorized to vote in the appropriate county. An individual who satisfies the requirements of this section and is subsequently authorized to vote shall not be subject to review pursuant to this section for one year.

d. For the purposes of this section, satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship shall include the following:

(2) A legible photocopy of the individual’s birth certificate that verifies citizenship to the satisfaction of the county commissioner of registration;

(5) Other documents or methods of proof that are established pursuant to the “Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986” (8 U.S.C. s.1101 et seq.); or

(6) The individual’s Bureau of Indian Affairs card number, tribal treaty card number, or tribal enrollment number.

4. Each county commissioner of registration shall submit a report summarizing the effects of implementation of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), including the number of registered voters placed under review, number of voters who subsequently verified their eligibility to vote and the number determined to be ineligible, common bases for determining eligibility, voter appeals, and errors or flaws in the system of review, to the Secretary of State, the Governor, and the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), within 30 days of the completion of each audit. The summary report shall be made publicly available on the Division of Elections’ Internet website.

5. a. The Secretary of State, in consultation with each county commissioner of registration, county clerk, county board of elections, and superintendent of elections, shall develop guidelines for the implementation of the provisions established pursuant to this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), including, but not limited to, how to effectively implement proof of citizenship and voter eligibility requirements.

b. The Secretary of State may adopt, in accordance with the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), such rules and regulations as may be necessary for implementation of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

6. This act shall take effect one year following the date of enactment, except that the Secretary of State and county commissioners of registration may take such anticipatory action as may be necessary for implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

This bill requires verification of United States citizenship in order to register to vote in any State or local election in this State. The bill also directs county commissioners of registration to audit registered voters to verify their citizenship.

The bill requires that whenever a county commissioner of registration receives an application for voter registration, except for submissions of federal election voter registration applications produced by the United States Election Assistance Commission, the commissioner will seek to verify that the individual making the application is a citizen of the United States. In conducting such review, the commissioner will utilize Motor Vehicle Commission records, information provided by other county commissioners of registration, State agencies, or other states, information available from a federal agency via a system or database to which the State has access pursuant to this bill, and any other information from a government entity that is publicly available. If the commissioner cannot verify the individual’s citizenship, then the commissioner will notify the individual and give them 30 days to provide satisfactory evidence of citizenship.

The bill also requires the commissioner of registration in each county to audit the list of voters currently registered in the respective county. Two audits must be completed each year, one by April 1 and another by September 1.

If the commissioner cannot confirm through the information available that an existing voter is a citizen of the United States, then the commissioner will place the registered voter under review and provide the registered voter with notice and an opportunity to provide satisfactory evidence of United States citizenship. Written notice will be provided by mail delivered to the address reflected in the voter’s file, specify the reason for initiating the review of the voter’s file, and identify the information that is required of the voter to verify that the voter is eligible to vote in the respective county. The voter will have 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of such notice to provide the required information to the commissioner.

Under the bill, satisfactory evidence of citizenship will include a driver’s license, a non-driver identification card, a birth certificate, a passport, naturalization documents or the number of the certificate of naturalization, documents or methods of proof that are established in the federal “Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986,” or a Bureau of Indian Affairs card.

The bill requires each county commissioner of registration to submit an annual report to the Secretary of State, the Governor, and the Legislature detailing the effectiveness of the voter review procedures implemented pursuant to the bill’s provisions.

The Secretary of State, in consultation with each county commissioner of registration, will develop guidelines for the implementation of the bill, including, but not limited to, how to effectively implement proof of citizenship and voter eligibility requirements.