Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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State of Arkansas 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1035 3
4
By: Representative A. Collins 5
6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO CREATE THE ONLINE VOTER REGISTRATION ACT OF 9
2025; TO ALLOW ONLINE VOTER REGISTRATION; TO AMEND 10
ARKANSAS CONSTITUTION, AMENDMENT 51; TO AMEND THE 11
DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE; AND FOR OTHER 12
PURPOSES. 13
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15
Subtitle 16
TO CREATE THE ONLINE VOTER REGISTRATION 17
ACT OF 2025; TO ALLOW ONLINE VOTER 18
REGISTRATION; TO AMEND ARKANSAS 19
CONSTITUTION, AMENDMENT 51; AND TO AMEND 20
THE DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE. 21
22
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 23
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SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Title. 25
This act shall be known and may be cited as "The Online Voter 26
Registration Act of 2025". 27
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SECTION 2. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 5(b)(1), concerning 29
the duties of voter registration officials, is amended to read as follows: 30
(b)(1)(A) The Secretary of State is designated as the chief election 31
official. The Secretary of State shall prepare and distribute the pre -32
addressed postcard mail voter registration application forms described in 51 -33
6 of this amendment. Mail voter registration application forms shall serve 34
for purposes of initial applications to register and shall also serve for 35
changes of name, address, or party affiliation. Bilingual (Spanish/English) 36 HB1035
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forms, braille forms, and large print forms shall be available upon request. 1
The Secretary of State shall make the state mail voter registration 2
application form available for distribution through governmental and private 3
entities with particular emphasis on making them available for organized 4
voter registration programs. Any person may distribute state registration 5
cards. All registration cards shall be distributed to the public without 6
charge. 7
(B)(i) The Secretary of State shall prepare and administer 8
online voter registration application forms. 9
(ii) Online voter registration application forms may 10
serve for purposes of initial applications to register and may serve for 11
changes of name, address, or party affiliation. 12
(iii) The system used to access the online voter 13
registration application forms shall be accessible without charge. 14
15
SECTION 3. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 5(e), concerning the 16
duties of registration officials, is amended to add an additional subdivision 17
to read as follows: 18
(f)(1) The Secretary of State may promulgate rules including detailed 19
specifications for the online voter registration application forms, and the 20
security measures for the protection of the voter registration applicant 21
information and the voter registration list. 22
(2) A rule promulgated under subdivision (f)(1) of this section 23
shall: 24
(A) Be consistent with this amendment and the laws passed 25
by the General Assembly; 26
(B) Be of uniform application across the state; and 27
(C) Follow the procedure for review and approval by the 28
General Assembly under the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act, § 25 -15-201 29
et seq. 30
(3) The Secretary of State shall not promulgate an emergency 31
rule under this subsection (f) and under the Arkansas Administrative 32
Procedure Act, § 25-15-201 et seq., within one hundred eighty (180) days of a 33
federal election unless approved by the General Assembly or if the General 34
Assembly is not in session, by the Legislative Council. 35
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SECTION 4. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 6(a)(1), concerning 1
statements included on the mail voter registration application form, is 2
amended to read as follows: 3
(a)(1) The mail voter registration application form and the online 4
voter registration application form may only require identifying information, 5
including a physical signature or mark, an electronic signature or mark, and 6
other information, including data relating to previous registration by the 7
applicant, as is necessary to assess the applicant's eligibility and to 8
administer voter registration and other parts of the election process. 9
10
SECTION 5. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 6(a)(3)(F), 11
concerning statements included on the mail voter registration application 12
form, is amended to read as follows: 13
(F) A physical signature or mark or an electronic 14
signature or mark made under penalty of perjury that the applicant meets each 15
requirement for voter registration; 16
17
SECTION 6. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 6(a)(4), concerning 18
statements included on the mail voter registration application form, is 19
amended to read as follows: 20
(4) The following information may be requested on the 21
registration card or online voter registration application form , but it shall 22
not be required: 23
(A) Telephone number where the applicant may be contacted; 24
and 25
(B) Political party with which the applicant wishes to be 26
affiliated, if any. 27
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SECTION 7. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 6(a)(5), concerning 29
statements included on the mail voter registration application form, is 30
amended to read as follows: 31
(5) The mail voter registration application form or the online 32
voter registration application form shall not include any a requirement for 33
notarization or other formal authentication. 34
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SECTION 8. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 6(a)(6), concerning 36 HB1035
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statements included on the mail voter registration application form, is 1
amended to read as follows: 2
(6) The mail voter registration application form and the online 3
voter registration application form shall include the following questions 4
along with boxes or other means for the applicant to check “yes” or “no” in 5
response: 6
(A) “Are you a citizen of the United States of America 7
and an Arkansas resident?”; 8
(B) “Will you be eighteen (18) years of age on or before 9
election day?”; 10
(C) “Are you presently adjudged mentally incompetent by a 11
court of competent jurisdiction?”; and 12
(D) “Have you ever been convicted of a felony without 13
your sentence having been discharged or pardoned?”. 14
15
SECTION 9. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 6(a)(7), concerning 16
statements included on the mail voter registration application form, is 17
amended to read as follows: 18
(7) The mail voter registration application form and the online 19
voter registration application form shall include the following statements 20
immediately following the questions asked in subdivision (a)(6) of this 21
section: 22
(A) “If you checked ‘No’ in response to either questions A 23
or B, do not complete this form.”; 24
(B) “If you checked ‘Yes’ in response to either questions 25
C or D, do not complete this form.”; and 26
(C) The mail-in voter registration application form and 27
the online voter registration application form shall include the following 28
statement: 29
“If your voter registration application form is 30
submitted by mail or online and you are registering for the first time, and 31
you do not have a valid driver's license number or Social Security number, in 32
order to avoid the additional identification requirements upon voting for the 33
first time you must submit with the mailed voter registration application 34
form: (a) a current and valid photo identification; or (b) a copy of a 35
current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other 36 HB1035
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government document that shows your name and address.” 1
2
SECTION 10. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 8(a)(2), concerning 3
voter registration application records and reports, is amended to read as 4
follows: 5
(2) The Secretary of State shall transmit all mail voter 6
registration applications application forms and online voter registration 7
application forms to the appropriate permanent registrar no later than ten 8
(10) days after the date of receipt. When applications mail voter 9
registration application forms and online voter registration application 10
forms are received within five (5) days before the last day of registration 11
for an election, they must be transmitted no later than five (5) days after 12
date of receipt. If mail voter registration application forms and online 13
voter registration application forms are received by the wrong election 14
office, they shall be forwarded to the appropriate permanent registrar not 15
later than the fifth day after receipt. 16
17
SECTION 11. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 8(c)(1), concerning 18
voter registration application records and reports, is amended to read as 19
follows: 20
(c)(1) The Secretary of State shall collect, maintain, and publish 21
monthly statistical data reflecting the number of new voter registration 22
applications, changes of address, name, and party affiliation, and 23
declinations received by mail , electronically, and in: 24
(A) state State revenue offices; 25
(B) public Public assistance agencies; 26
(C) disabilities Disabilities agencies; 27
(D) recruitment Recruitment offices of the Armed Forces of 28
the United States United States Armed Forces ; 29
(E) public Public libraries; and 30
(F) offices Offices of the Arkansas National Guard. 31
32
SECTION 12. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 9(c), concerning 33
the application to register to vote, is amended to add an additional 34
subdivision to read as follows: 35
(4) The permanent registrar shall register qualified applicants 36 HB1035
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who apply to register to vote by using an online voter registration 1
application form if: 2
(A) The online voter registration application form is 3
submitted no later than thirty (30) days before the date of the election; and 4
(B) The applicant for online voter registration provides a 5
current valid driver's license number or the last four (4) digits of the 6
applicant's Social Security number. 7
8
SECTION 13. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 10(a), concerning 9
the transfer and change of status for a registered voter, is amended to read 10
as follows: 11
(a) Upon a change of legal residence within the county, or a change of 12
name, any registered voter may cause his or her registration to be 13
transferred to his or her new address or new name by completing and mailing a 14
federal or state mail voter registration application form, by completing an 15
online voter registration application form, by updating his or her address at 16
the Office of Driver Services, any state revenue office, public assistance 17
agency, disabilities agency, or other voter registration agency, by signing a 18
mailed request to the permanent registrar, giving his or her present address 19
and the address at which he or she was last registered or his or her present 20
name and the name under which he or she was last registered, or by applying 21
in person at the office of the permanent registrar. 22
23
SECTION 14. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 51, § 10(b)(1), 24
concerning the transfer and change of status for a registered voter, is 25
amended to add an additional subdivision to read as follows: 26
(b)(1) Upon a change of legal residence from one (1) county within the 27
state to another county within the state, any registered voter may cause his 28
or her registration to be transferred to the new county at his or her new 29
address by: 30
(A) Completing and mailing a federal or state mail voter 31
registration application form; 32
(B) Updating his or her new address at a voter 33
registration agency, including without limitation the Office of Driver 34
Services or a state revenue office, public assistance agency, or disabilities 35
agency; 36 HB1035
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(C) Signing a mailed request to the permanent registrar 1
giving the voter's present address and the address at which the voter was 2
last registered; or 3
(D) Applying in person for the transfer at the office of 4
the permanent registrar . ; or 5
(E) Completing an online voter registration application 6
form. 7
8
SECTION 15. Arkansas Code § 7 -5-201(e)(1), concerning voter 9
qualification, is amended to read as follows: 10
(e)(1) A person registering to vote by mail or by an online voter 11
registration application form and who has not previously voted in a federal 12
election in this state shall: 13
(A) Present to the election official a current and valid 14
photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, 15
government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name 16
and address of the voter when appearing to vote in person either early or at 17
the polls on election day; or 18
(B) When voting by mail, submit with the ballot a copy of 19
a current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, 20
bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that 21
shows the name and address of the voter. 22
23
SECTION 16. Arkansas Code § 7 -5-201(e)(3)(E) and (F), concerning voter 24
qualification, are amended to read as follows: 25
(E) Persons who register to vote by mail or by an online 26
voter registration application form and submit as part of the registration 27
any of the identification documents listed in subdivision (e)(1) of this 28
section; or 29
(F) Persons who register to vote by mail or by an online 30
voter registration application form and submit with the registration either a 31
driver's license number or at least the last four (4) digits of the 32
individual's Social Security number and with respect to whom a state or local 33
election official matches the license number or Social Security number with 34
an existing state identification record bearing the same number, name, and 35
date of birth as provided in the registration. 36 HB1035
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1
SECTION 17. Arkansas Code § 7 -5-305(a)(8)(B)(iii), concerning first -2
time voter identification, is amended to read as follows: 3
(iii) A first-time voter who registers by mail or by 4
an online voter registration application form without providing 5
identification when registering and desires to vote in person but who does 6
not meet the identification requirements of § 7 -5-201(e) may cast a 7
provisional ballot. 8
9
SECTION 18. Arkansas Code Title 7, Chapter 5, Subchapter 3, is amended 10
to add an additional section to read as follows: 11
7-5-325. Online voter registration. 12
(a) The Secretary of State shall establish and maintain a secure 13
online voter registration system. 14
(b) The online voter registration system shall allow: 15
(1) The submission of an online voter registration application 16
form meeting the requirements established in Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 17
51, § 6; and 18
(2) A voter registration to be completed using the online voter 19
registration system and after completion on the online voter registration 20
system, to be included on the voter registration list. 21
(c) The Secretary of State shall: 22
(1) Employ security measures the Secretary of State determines 23
to be necessary to ensure the integrity, accuracy, and security of the online 24
voter registration system; and 25
(2) Establish and implement a process for the verification of 26
address information submitted by a person registering to vote, or a 27
registered voter updating his or her address when: 28
(A) Using the online voter registration application form; 29
(B) Providing address information to a state agency 30
charged with voter registration address information; or 31
(C) Using a state mail voter registration application 32
form. 33
(d) Each person using the online voter registration system shall be 34
informed as to whether: 35
(1) The online voter registration application form has been 36 HB1035
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successfully submitted and is pending approval; or 1
(2) The online voter registration system encountered an error in 2
processing the online voter registration application form and the online 3
voter registration application form was not successfully submitted. 4
(e)(1) The Secretary of State shall promulgate rules necessary to 5
implement the requirements under this section under the Arkansas 6
Administrative Procedure Act, § 25 -15-201 et seq. 7
(2) The Secretary of State shall not promulgate emergency rules 8
necessary to implement this section under the Arkansas Administrative 9
Procedure Act, § 25-15-201 et seq., within one hundred eighty (180) days of a 10
federal election unless approved by the General Assembly or if the General 11
Assembly is not in session, by the Legislative Council. 12
13
SECTION 19. Arkansas Code § 7 -5-412(a)(2)(B) concerning identification 14
for absentee ballots, is amended to read as follows: 15
(B) A copy of a current and valid photographic 16
identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, 17
government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name 18
and address of the first -time voter, for first -time voters who registered by 19
mail or by an online voter registration application form . However, this 20
requirement does not apply if: 21
(i) The voter registered to vote by mail or by an 22
online voter registration application form and provided the identification at 23
that time; or 24
(ii) The first-time voter registered to vote by mail 25
or by an online voter registration application form and submitted his or her 26
driver's license number or at least the last four (4) digits of his or her 27
Social Security number at the time and this information matches the 28
information in an existing state identification record bearing the same 29
number, name, and date of birth as provided in the registration. 30
31
SECTION 20. Arkansas Code § 7 -5-416(b)(1)(F), concerning the counting 32
of absentee ballots, is amended to read as follows: 33
(F)(i) After the election official reads aloud from the 34
statement, the election officials shall compare the name, address, date of 35
birth, and signature of the voter's absentee application with the voter's 36 HB1035
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statement and,: 1
(a) for For first-time voters who registered 2
by mail, the first-time voter's identification document unless the voter 3
previously provided identification at the time of mailing the voter 4
registration application .; or 5
(b) For first-time voters who registered using 6
an online voter registration application form, the first -time voter's 7
identification document unless the voter previously provided identification 8
at the time of electronically registering using an online voter registration 9
application form. 10
(ii) If the county board of election commissioners 11
determines that the absentee application and the voter's statement do not 12
compare as to name, residential voting address, date of birth, and signature, 13
the absentee ballot shall not be counted. 14
(iii) If a first-time voter fails to provide the 15
required identification with the absentee ballot or at the time of mailing 16
the voter registration application , or at the time of registration using an 17
online voter registration application form, then the absentee application, 18
absentee ballot envelope, and voter's statement shall be placed in an 19
envelope marked “provisional” and the absentee ballot shall be considered a 20
provisional ballot; 21
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SECTION 21. EFFECTIVE DATE. This act shall become effective on and 23
after January 1, 2026. 24
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