SENATE BILL 732
By Pody
HOUSE BILL 934
By Fritts
HB0934
000991
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AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 2,
relative to voting.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 2-7-112(a)(1), is amended by
deleting the subdivision and substituting instead:
(A) A voter shall complete and sign an application for ballot, indicate the primary
in which the voter desires to vote, if any, and present it to a precinct registrar. The
application for ballot must include a space for the address of the voter's current
residence, and the voter shall write or print such address on the application when the
voter signs the application for ballot.
(B) At the time a voter presents an application for ballot, the voter shall present
to the precinct registrar one (1) form of identification for voter identification that bears the
name and photograph and residential address of the voter. The requirement to present
one (1) form of identification that bears the name and photograph and residential
address of the voter applies to persons voting pursuant to § 2-6-109; provided, however,
that a person voting in accordance with § 2-6-401(a) and (b) or § 2-6-601 is not required
to show an identification with a photograph and residential address of the voter.
(C) For purposes of verifying the person's identification on the application for
ballot, "form of identification for voter identification" must:
(i) Have been obtained with documented proof of citizenship of the
United States;
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(ii) Include the voter's photograph, current residential address, and
expiration date of the identification;
(iii) Indicate that the individual meets eligibility requirements for voting,
including citizenship of the United States;
(iv) Accommodate for the permanently disabled and include a process for
permanent identification; and
(v) Not be an identification card issued to a student by an institution of
higher education.
(D) Using the computerized voter signature list or the electronic poll book, the
registrar shall make a determination whether the voter's address is different from the
address on the voter's permanent registration record or if the registration is in inactive
status. If the voter has changed residence, or the voter's registration is inactive, the
registrar shall follow the procedures for voting pursuant to §§ 2-7-140 and 2-7-141.
(E) If, upon verification of evidence of identification, it is found that the applicant
is entitled to vote, the registrar shall initial the application, note the date of the election,
the number on the voter's ballot application, and the primary or general election in which
the voter applies to vote.
(F) If the applicant's signature is illegible, the registrar shall print the name on the
application.
(G) The state coordinator of elections shall promulgate rules for training all
election commissioners, election employees, election officials, and poll workers for
procedures at the polls.
(H) The state coordinator of elections, in concurrence with the secretary of state,
shall provide public access to information regarding how to obtain and the proper use of
voter identification as required for the procedures to vote.
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SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 2-7-112(c), is amended by deleting
the subsection.
SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 2-7-112(a)(3)(A)(vi), is amended by
deleting the language "punchcard or".
SECTION 4. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 2-7-112(a)(3)(B)(i), is amended by
deleting the following language:
When provisional ballots have been cast utilizing punchcard or optiscan
technology, the counting of the provisional ballots shall be pursuant to rules
promulgated by the state coordinator of elections.
and substituting instead:
When provisional ballots have been cast utilizing a paper ballot, either marked by
hand or a ballot-marking device, and tabulated by optical scan technology, the
counting of the provisional ballots must be pursuant to rules promulgated by the
state coordinator of elections.
SECTION 5. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 2-7-112(d), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting instead:
(d) For purposes of processing the voter's application to vote pursuant to
subdivision (a)(3), "verification of residential address" includes, but is not limited to, a
Tennessee driver license, a residential lease agreement, a utility bill, or other document
bearing the applicant's residential address. The "verification of residential address" must
not include a digital source or sources. Such verification may be on the same or
different identification from those listed in subsection (a).
SECTION 6. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.