ENROLLED
2023 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 1
BY REPRESENTATIVES SCHLEGEL AND GAROFALO
A RESOLUTION
To urge and request the registrar of voters of each parish to submit to the Department of
State, and for the Department of State to subsequently submit to the Louisiana House
of Representatives, an annual report on the results of the annual canvass of registered
voters and the removal of deceased voters from the voter registration rolls in each
parish.
WHEREAS, Louisiana's voter rolls should only include living United States citizens
who reside at the address listed in the voter rolls; and
WHEREAS, Article I, Section 10 of the Constitution of Louisiana provides for the
right to vote and was amended, with the approval of seventy-three percent of the vote at the
December 10, 2022, election, to provide that no person who is not a citizen of the United
States shall be allowed to register and vote in this state; and
WHEREAS, as evidenced by the successful passage of the constitutional amendment,
Louisiana voters value the integrity of the right to vote and the voter registration process;
and
WHEREAS, R.S. 18:192 and 193 requires the registrar of voters of each parish to
conduct an annual canvass for the purpose of identifying registered voters who are no longer
qualified to be registered or have changed their residence; and
WHEREAS, to facilitate the canvass process, the law further requires the Department
of State to use the United States Postal Service or its licensee to verify the names and
addresses of the registrants in all precincts in the state; and
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WHEREAS, R.S. 18:173, which provides for the removal of deceased voters from
the voting rolls, was amended by Act No. 364 of the 2021 Regular Session of the
Legislature, which passed unanimously in the House of Representatives and Senate and was
subsequently signed by the governor; and
WHEREAS, R.S. 18:173 requires the registrar of voters of each parish to remove
from the voter registration rolls the names of deceased voters upon receipt of a certified copy
of the voter's death certificate and requires the registrar of voters to search obituaries for
deceased persons whose registrations were not cancelled and to cancel such registrations
accordingly; and
WHEREAS, the law further requires the Department of State to cancel the
registration of any deceased person as deaths are reported to the department by the
Department of Health; and
WHEREAS, as evidenced by the unanimous vote of the legislature in passing Act
No. 364, the legislature finds it a priority that the voting rolls be properly maintained and
that deceased voters be promptly removed.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge and request that the Department of State and the
registrar of voters of each parish complete the legal requirements of R.S. 18:173 in a timely
manner.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives does hereby urge
and request the registrar of voters of each parish to annually submit a report to the
Department of State, on or before July thirtieth, that includes the following:
(1)Actions taken by the registrar's office in the prior year to canvass and verify voter
registration information, the total number of voters verified by the canvass, the total
number of voters not verified by the canvass, and any actions taken as a result of the
canvass process.
(2)The number of deceased voters removed from the voter rolls in the prior year.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives does hereby urge
and request that the Department of State annually submit a report to the House of
Representatives, on or before August thirtieth, that includes the following:
(1)Actions taken by the Department of State and each registrar of voters in the prior
year to canvass and verify voter registration information, the total number of voters
verified by the canvass, the total number of voters not verified by the canvass, and
any actions taken as a result of the canvass process.
(2)The number of deceased voters removed from the voter rolls in each parish in the
prior year.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
secretary of state and the registrar of voters of each parish.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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