FIRST REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 50
93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATORS TAYLOR AND NODLER.
Pre-filed December 1, 2004, and ordered printed.
TERRY L. SPIELER, Secretary.
0252L.01I
AN ACT
To repeal sections 115.135, 115.155, and 115.160, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof three new sections relating to voter registration.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 115.135, 115.155, and 115.160, RSMo, are repealed and three new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 115.135, 115.155, and 115.160, to read as follows:
115.135. 1. Any person who is qualified to vote, or who shall become qualified to vote on or before the day of election, shall be entitled to register in the jurisdiction within which he or she resides. In order to vote in any election for which registration is required, a person must be registered to vote in the jurisdiction of his or her residence no later than 5:00 p.m., or the normal closing time of any public building where the registration is being held if such time is later than 5:00 p.m., on the fourth Wednesday prior to the election, unless the voter is an interstate former resident, an intrastate new resident or a new resident, as defined in section 115.275. In no case shall registration for an election extend beyond 10:00 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday prior to the election. Any person registering after such date shall be eligible to vote in subsequent elections.
2. A person applying to register with an election authority or a deputy registration official shall present a copy of a birth certificate or other proof of United States citizenship and a valid Missouri drivers license or other form of personal identification at the time of registration.
3. Except as provided in federal law or federal elections and in section 115.277, no person shall be entitled to vote if the person has not registered to vote in the jurisdiction of his or her residence prior to the deadline to register to vote.
115.155. 1. The election authority shall provide for the registration of each voter. Each application shall be in substantially the following form:
APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION Are you a citizen of the United States? YES NO
Will you be 18 years of age on or before election day? YES NO
IF YOU CHECKED "NO" IN RESPONSE TO EITHER OF THESE QUESTIONS, DO NOT COMPLETE THIS FORM.
IF YOU ARE SUBMITTING THIS FORM BY MAIL AND ARE REGISTERING FOR THE FIRST TIME, PLEASE SUBMIT A COPY OF A CURRENT, VALID PHOTO IDENTIFICATION [OR] AND A COPY OF A [CURRENT UTILITY BILL, BANK STATEMENT, GOVERNMENT CHECK, PAYCHECK, OR GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT THAT SHOWS YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS. IF YOU DO NOT SUBMIT SUCH INFORMATION, YOU WILL BE REQUIRED TO PRESENT ADDITIONAL IDENTIFICATION UPON VOTING FOR THE FIRST TIME] BIRTH CERTIFICATE OR OTHER PROOF OF UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP.
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Township (or Ward)
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Name Precinct
......................... .........................
Home Address Required Personal
Identification Information
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City ZIP
......................... .................................
Date of Birth Place of Birth (Optional)
......................... .................................
Telephone Number Mother's Maiden Name
(Optional) (Optional)
......................... .................................
Occupation (Optional) Last Place Previously Registered
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Last four digits of Under What Name
Social Security Number
(Required for registration
unless no Social Security
number exists for Applicant)
Remarks:
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When
I am a citizen of the United States and a resident of the state of Missouri. I have not been adjudged incapacitated by any court of law. If I have been convicted of a felony or of a misdemeanor connected with the right of suffrage, I have had the voting disabilities resulting from such conviction removed pursuant to law. I do solemnly swear that all statements made on this card are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.
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Signature of Voter Date
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Signature of Election Official
2. After supplying all information necessary for the registration records, each applicant who appears in person before the election authority shall swear or affirm the statements on the registration application by signing his or her full name, witnessed by the signature of the election authority or such authority's deputy registration official. Each applicant who applies to register by mail pursuant to section 115.159, or pursuant to section 115.160 or 115.162, shall attest to the statements on the application by his or her signature.
3. Upon receipt by mail of a completed and signed voter registration application, a voter registration application forwarded by the division of motor vehicle and drivers licensing of the department of revenue pursuant to section 115.160, or a voter registration agency pursuant to section 115.162, the election authority shall, if satisfied that the applicant is entitled to register, transfer all data necessary for the registration records from the application to its registration system. Within seven business days after receiving the application, the election authority shall send the applicant a verification notice. If such notice is returned as undeliverable by the postal service within the time established by the election authority, the election authority shall not place the applicant's name on the voter registration file.
4. If, upon receipt by mail of a voter registration application or a voter registration application forwarded pursuant to section 115.160 or 115.162, the election authority determines that the applicant is not entitled to register, such authority shall, within seven business days after receiving the application, so notify the applicant by mail and state the reason such authority has determined the applicant is not qualified. The applicant may have such determination reviewed pursuant to the provisions of section 115.223. If an applicant for voter registration fails to answer the question on the application concerning United States citizenship, the election authority shall notify the applicant of the failure and provide the applicant with an opportunity to complete the form in a timely manner to allow for the completion of the registration form before the next election.
5. It shall be the responsibility of the secretary of state to prescribe specifications for voter registration documents so that they are uniform throughout the state of Missouri and comply with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, including the reporting requirements, and so that registrations, name changes and transfers of registrations within the state may take place as allowed by law.
6. All voter registration applications shall be preserved in the office of the election authority.
115.160. 1. All Missouri driver's license applicants shall receive a voter registration application form as a simultaneous part of the application for a driver's license, renewal of driver's license, change of address, duplicate request and a nondriver's license.
2. If a single application form is used, the voter registration application portion of any application described in subsection 1 of this section may not require any information that duplicates information required in the driver's license portion of the form, except a second signature or other information required by law.
3. After conferring with the secretary of state as the chief state election official responsible for overseeing of the voter registration process, the director of revenue shall adopt rules and regulations pertaining to the format of the voter registration application used by the department.
4. No information relating to the failure of an applicant for a driver's license or nondriver's license to sign a voter registration application may be used for any purpose other than voter registration.
5. Any voter registration application received pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be forwarded to the election authority located within that county or any city not within a county, or if there is more than one election authority within the county, then to the election authority located nearest to the location where the driver's license application was received. The election authority receiving the application forms shall review the applications and forward any applications pertaining to a different election authority to that election authority.
6. A completed voter registration application accepted in the driver's licensing process shall be transmitted to the election authority described in subsection 5 of this section not later than five business days after the form is completed by the applicant.
7. Any person registering to vote when applying for or renewing a Missouri driver's license shall, if requested by the county clerk, submit with the application form a copy of the person's birth certificate or other proof of United States citizenship.