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SENATE DOCKET, NO. 288 FILED ON: 1/10/2025
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 498
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
Michael D. Brady
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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act relative to Election Day registration at polling places.
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PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Michael D. BradySecond Plymouth and Norfolk 1 of 8
SENATE DOCKET, NO. 288 FILED ON: 1/10/2025
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 498
By Mr. Brady, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 498) of Michael D. Brady for
legislation relative to Election Day registration at polling places. Election Laws.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
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An Act relative to Election Day registration at polling places.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Section 1 of chapter 51 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022
2Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the last sentence in lines 15 to 20, inclusive,
3and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- A person otherwise qualified to vote for
4national or state officers, but who has not registered in accordance with the provisions of section
526 of this chapter shall be eligible to register under section 34A.
6 SECTION 2. Section 1F of chapter 51 of the General Laws is hereby repealed.
7 SECTION 3. Said chapter 51, as so appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby
8amended, by striking out section 3, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following
9section:-
10 Section 3. For all elections and primaries, a person shall be registered and may vote in the
11ward or voting precinct where he resides; provided, however, that any registered voter of a city
12or town who moves to any other precinct in said city or town or to another city or town may 2 of 8
13register to vote at his new address by making written application to the city or town clerk no later
14than the close of registration or in accordance with the provisions of section 34A. A new resident
15of the city or town may also, upon like application, be registered at the new address by making
16written application to the city or town clerk no later than the close of registration or in
17accordance with the provisions of section 34A. The city or town clerk shall forthwith notify each
18voter making any such written application that the same has been received and that he may vote,
19subject to the provision of this section regarding the close of registration, in the ward or precinct
20into which he has moved or in accordance with provisions of section 34A.
21 SECTION 4. Section 26 of said chapter 51, as so appearing in the 2022 Official Edition,
22is hereby amended by striking out, in line 10, the words “eight o’clock in the evening” and
23inserting in place thereof, in each instance, the following figure:- 5:00 pm.
24 SECTION 5. Section 26 of said chapter 51, as so appearing in the 2022 Official Edition,
25is hereby further amended by striking the last sentence contained in lines 22 to 28, inclusive.
26 SECTION 6. Said chapter 51 is hereby further amended by striking out section 28, as so
27appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
28 Section 28. Registrars shall hold a continuous session from 9:00 am until 5:00 pm on the
29last day for registration prescribed under section 26. For those towns having less than 1,500
30voters, such session shall be sufficient if it includes the time from 9:00 until 11:00 am and from
312:00 until 5:00 pm.
32 SECTION 7. Said chapter 51 is hereby further amended by striking out section 34, as
33appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:- 3 of 8
34 Section 34. Except as otherwise provided in section 34A, after 5:00 pm of a day on which
35registration is to cease, the registrars shall not register any person to vote in the next election,
36except that they shall furnish, or cause to be furnished, to each person waiting in line at the hour
37of 5:00 pm for the purpose of being registered, a card or slip of identification bearing such
38person’s name and shall, before registration ceases, permit such person to register.
39 SECTION 8. Said chapter 51 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 34 the
40following section:-
41 Section 34A. (a) An individual who is eligible to vote may register on the day of an
42election by appearing in person at the polling place, during the hours it is open for voting, for the
43precinct in which the individual maintains residence, by completing a registration application in
44a form prescribed by the state secretary which complies with identity requirements of 52 U.S.C.
45section 21083, by presenting to the appropriate election official proof of residency and by
46making a written oath which shall be as follows: I certify that I: am a citizen of the United States;
47am at least 18 years old; am not under guardianship that prohibits me from registering and/or
48voting or otherwise prohibited from voting; am not temporarily or permanently disqualified by
49law because of corrupt practices in respect to elections; have not and will not vote in any other
50location within the Commonwealth or elsewhere; have read and understand this statement: I
51further understand that giving false information is a felony punishable by not more than 5 years
52imprisonment or a fine of not more than $10,000, or both.
53 (b) For purposes of this section, the term “proof of residence” shall mean 1 of the
54following, so long as it includes the name of the applicant and the address from which he or she
55is registering: 4 of 8
56 (i) a valid photo identification including, but not limited to, a Massachusetts driver’s
57license or other state-issued identification card; or
58 (ii) other documentation demonstrating the name and address where the applicant
59maintains residence and seeks to register including, but not limited to, a copy of a current utility
60bill, bank statement, government check, residential lease agreement, wireless telephone
61statement, paycheck, other government document or correspondence, a current student fee
62statement or other document from a post-secondary educational institution that verifies the
63student’s current address.
64 (c) Upon meeting the identity requirements of subsection (a), production of proof of
65residence, and the making of an oath sufficient to support registration, the ballot clerk or his
66designee shall permit the applicant to vote at that election. Any person
67 who registers to vote on the day of an election in accordance with this section shall,
68absent disqualification, be registered to vote at all subsequent primaries and elections.
69 (d) A registrant who fails to present suitable identification shall be permitted to deposit a
70provisional ballot pursuant to the provisions of section 76C of chapter 54, but shall be required to
71return within two business days after a state primary or municipal election or within six days
72following a state election to present sufficient identification to the local election officials in order
73for the local election officials to determine that the registrant is qualified to vote in such election
74and has deposited an eligible provisional ballot.
75 (e) The state secretary shall make available to the election officers at each polling place,
76to the extent possible, access to the statewide list of registered voters as contained in the central
77registry of voters set forth in section 47C. For the purposes of this section, an electronic or 5 of 8
78printed copy of all voters registered to vote in that precinct as of the last day of the registration
79period, as required by sections 55 and 60, shall be sufficient.
80 (f) The local election officials may correct information supplied by the registrant to the
81extent necessary to maintain the integrity of their records. If an affidavit is incomplete or if it
82appears from the facts set forth in the affidavit that the registrant is not qualified to register as a
83voter, the local election officials shall proceed in accordance with the provisions of section forty-
84seven.
85 (g) As soon as practicable after the election, the registrars shall add the registrant’s name,
86address and effective date of registration to the annual register of voters.
87 (h) This section shall not apply to an individual seeking to register to vote in any town for
88the purposes of voting at annual town meeting or special town meeting.
89 (i) A registered voter shall not re- register on the day of a primary or election for the
90exclusive purpose of altering his party affiliation.
91 (j) The state secretary shall adopt regulations to implement the relevant provisions of this
92chapter.
93 (k) Upon credible information or allegation of illegal voter registration, or credible
94information or allegation of illegal multiple voting, there shall be an investigation upon the
95merits of said information or allegation by the attorney general, or by the district attorney having
96jurisdiction over the municipality in which the alleged illegal registration or illegal multiple
97voting occurred. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as excluding enforcement of this
98section by any means otherwise provided by law. 6 of 8
99 (l) Violations of this section shall be punishable under sections 8, 26 and 27, of chapter
10056.
101 SECTION 9. Said chapter 51 is hereby further amended by striking out section 47C, as so
102appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
103 Section 47C. Subject to appropriation, the state secretary shall maintain a central registry
104of voters which shall contain the names, addresses and effective dates of registration of all
105registered voters in the commonwealth and which shall contain the name, date of birth,
106occupation, veteran status, nationality, if not a citizen of the United States, for street list purposes
107only, and residence on January first in the preceding year and in the current year, of every person
108three years of age or older in the commonwealth as provided by registrars. The registrars shall
109enter and maintain all the information required. The secretary of the commonwealth shall adopt
110regulations governing the operation of said central registry. The names and addresses of voters
111and any other information contained in said central registry shall not be a matter of public record;
112provided however, that such information shall be available upon execution of a license
113agreement to state party committees, official political designation committees, statewide
114candidate committees, state ballot question committees, the jury commissioner, adjutant general
115and any other individual, agency or entity that the state secretary shall designate by regulation
116consistent with the purposes of this section, at a fair and reasonable cost not to exceed the cost of
117printing or preparing computer readable documents.
118 SECTION 10. Said chapter 51 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 47C
119the following section:- 7 of 8
120 Section 47D. The registry of motor vehicles, and any other state agency permitted by law,
121shall provide data, as deemed necessary by the state secretary, for the purposes of maintaining
122accurate and complete voter lists. At least every 2 months, the registry of motor vehicles, and
123any other state agency the secretary designates, shall electronically transmit to the secretary all
124data as directed by the secretary and relevant to the purposes of voter registration, including, if
125available, the following record fields: (i) name, current residential address, mailing address, date
126of birth, driver’s license number and/or last 4 digits of the social security number, and telephone
127number; (ii) date, time, and nature of the last change to the information; and (iii) any additional
128information designated by the state secretary for such purposes and reasonably related to
129maintaining accurate and complete voter lists.
130 The secretary shall provide the names and addresses and other data contained in said
131central registry, as well as information received from the registry of motor vehicles and any other
132agency received for the purpose of maintaining accurate and complete voting lists, to the
133Electronic Registration Information Center (“ERIC”) after entering into a binding legal
134agreement with ERIC specifying the terms and conditions of Massachusetts’s membership in the
135Center.
136 The secretary shall implement, if practicable, a centralized system to manage and
137evaluate data received from ERIC to send required mailings to voters and residents
138 identified as eligible but not registered centrally rather than from the local level. The
139secretary shall provide information to the registrars in electronic form and in a manner
140minimizing data management at the local level for any action necessary to be taken by the local
141election officials. 8 of 8
142 The information sent to and received from ERIC shall not be a public record.
143 SECTION 11. There shall be an advisory committee on the implementation of Election
144Day registration. Among other issues it may consider, the advisory committee shall study the
145resources necessary for, costs associated with, and feasibility of providing every polling location
146with real-time electronic access to the statewide database of registered voters. The advisory
147committee shall be comprised of the secretary of state, or a designee, who shall chair the
148advisory committee, the attorney general, or a designee, the house and senate chairs of the joint
149committee on election laws, or their designees, 2 representatives of the Massachusetts Town
150Clerks Association, at least 1 of whom shall be a town clerk from a town of under 5,000
151residents, and 2 representatives of the Massachusetts City Clerks Association. The advisory
152committee shall complete its study on the implementation of election day registration and submit
153an interim report and recommendations for improving administration of election day registration,
154in writing, to the joint committee on election laws and the senate and house committees on ways
155and means on or before June 30, 2025, and the advisory committee shall submit its final report in
156writing to the joint committee on election laws and the senate and house committees on ways and
157means on or before June 30, 2025.
158 SECTION 12. Sections 1 through 8 of this act shall take effect on July 1, 2025.
159 SECTION 13. Sections 9 through 11 shall take effect within 60 days of passage.