2016 -- S 2513

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LC003757

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2016

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- REGISTRATION OF VOTERS

     

     Introduced By: Senators Goldin, Lynch Prata, Conley, Lombardi, and Walaska

     Date Introduced: February 25, 2016

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     (Secretary of State)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 17-9.1-10 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-9.1 entitled

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"Registration of Voters" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     17-9.1-10. Additional method of registering. -- (a) In addition to the methods for

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registering to vote provided in §§ 17-9.1-7, 17-9.1-8, and 17-9.1-9, and 17-9.1-34, whenever any

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person who is or may be by the next election qualified to vote desires to register, that person may

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appear before the local board of the city or town in which he or she has his or her residence, as

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defined in § 17-1-3.1, or before the clerk or other duly authorized agent of the board, or before a

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registrar appointed by the state board of elections, and shall furnish the information required of

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him or her by this chapter and any information described in §§ 17-9.1-23 and 17-9.1-24 that the

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registrant may wish to record, and after the information has been recorded on the registry card

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furnished for that purpose, the person shall sign his or her name and certify to the truth of the

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facts recorded in the appropriate spaces in the card; provided, whenever any person is unable to

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sign his or her name because of physical incapacity or otherwise, he or she shall make his mark

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"(X)", which shall be witnessed by the person receiving the registration.

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      (b) It shall be the duty of the local board or clerk or other duly authorized agent of the

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board or registrar of the state board of elections to inform the person registering to vote that the

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voter will be mailed an acknowledgement card advising the person of the disposition of the

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registration and in the process verifying that the person resides at the address provided on the

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registration form. The person shall also be advised that if the acknowledgement card is returned

 

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as undeliverable, the person will be placed on the inactive list of voters pending the results of the

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confirmation process described in § 17-9.1-26. Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed

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to entitle a person to vote whose registration form has not been filed with the local board at least

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thirty (30) days before an election.

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     SECTION 2. Chapter 17-9.1 of the General Laws entitled "Registration of Voters" is

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hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

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     17-9.1-34. Electronic registration of voters. -- (a) The secretary of state shall establish

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and maintain a portal for electronic voter registration. An applicant may use such portal to

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register to vote, or to update existing voter registration information, provided:

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     (1) The applicant's information is verifiable in the manner described in subsection (b) of

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this section;

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     (2) The applicant's signature is in a database described in subsection (b) of this section;

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and

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     (3) Such signature may be imported into such system for electronic voter registration.

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     (b) Upon request of the secretary of state, a state agency, quasi-public agency or

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municipality shall provide information to the secretary of state that the secretary of state deems

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necessary to maintain the system for electronic voter registration, and the information so obtained

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shall be used for no other purpose. The secretary of state shall verify applicant information by

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cross-referencing information submitted by applicants with data or information contained in any

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state agency's, quasi-public agency's or municipality's database or a database administered by the

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federal government, or any voter registration database of another state. The secretary of state shall

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not use the information obtained from any such databases except to verify information submitted

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by the applicant. The applicant's signature, if part of the data contained in the state agency's,

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quasi-public agency's or municipality's database, shall be included as part of the applicant's

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information contained in the system for electronic voter registration. No information viewed or

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received by the secretary of state pursuant to this subsection may be transferred to, shared with or

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otherwise conveyed to any other governmental or non-governmental entity for any reason except

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for voter registration purposes or pursuant to a court order.

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     (c) The submission of an electronic application shall contain all of the information that is

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required for an application under §17-9.1-9, with the exception of the signature which shall be

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obtained from another state agency, quasi-public agency, or municipality's database pursuant to

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subsection (b) of this section.

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     (d) An applicant using the system shall mark the box associated with the following

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statement included as part of the electronic application:

 

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     "By clicking on the box below, I swear or affirm all of the following under penalty of

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perjury:

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     (1) I am the person whose name and identifying information is provided on this form, and

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I desire to register to vote or update my voter registration information in the state of Rhode

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Island.

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     (2) All of the information I have provided on this form is true and correct as of the date I

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am submitting this form.

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     (3) I authorize a Rhode Island state agency, quasi-public agency, or municipality to

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transmit, for voter registration purposes, to the secretary of state and my city's/town's board of

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canvassers, my signature that is on file with such state agency, quasi-public agency or

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municipality. I understand that the secretary of state and my city's/town's board of canvassers will

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use such signature on this electronic voter registration application as if I had signed this form

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personally."

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     (e) Upon approval of such application, the boards of canvassers shall send a confirmation

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notice to the applicant.

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     (f) The secretary of state may enter into an agreement and exchange information or data

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with any other state exclusively for the purposes of updating the statewide central voter register

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and registering voters, provided such activities are performed under the supervision of the

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secretary of state and the secretary of state enters into an agreement to protect the confidentiality

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of such information or data. A Rhode Island state agency shall provide the secretary of state with

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information or data to be used exclusively for voter registration purposes and shall advise the

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secretary of state if such information or data is held confidential. The secretary of state shall not

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use or transmit the information or data for any purpose except for voter registration purposes or

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pursuant to a court order.

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     (g) To ensure full, equal and independent access to all voters with disabilities, any

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Internet site and voter registration form created to register voters electronically or allow voters to

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update their voter registration shall comply with all requirements under Title II of the Americans

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with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§12131-12165, and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

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(WCAG) 2.0 compliance level AA. Experts concerning disability and usability access to websites

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shall be included in the development of any voter registration website and voter registration form,

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and shall verify accessibility and usability before the website, or an updated version of the

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website, is made available to the general public.

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     (h) The website and form shall be available in any language required by federal or state

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voting rights laws.

 

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- REGISTRATION OF VOTERS

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     This act would require the secretary of state to establish a system for the electronic

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registration of voters. The act would limit the use or transfer of the information supplied by the

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voter in registering.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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