By: Fraser, Estes, NelsonNichols S.B. No. 362
Nichols
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to requiring a voter to present proof of identification.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 15, Election Code, is
amended by adding Section 15.005 to read as follows:
Sec. 15.005. NOTICE OF IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.
(a) The voter registrar of each county shall provide notice of the
identification requirements for voting prescribed by Chapter 63 and
a detailed description of those requirements with each voter
registration certificate issued under Section 13.142 or renewal
registration certificate issued under Section 14.001.
(b) The secretary of state shall prescribe the wording of
the notice to be included on the certificate under this section.
SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 31, Election Code, is
amended by adding Section 31.012 to read as follows:
Sec. 31.012. VOTER IDENTIFICATION EDUCATION. (a) The
secretary of state and the voter registrar of each county that
maintains a website shall provide notice of the identification
requirements for voting prescribed by Chapter 63 on each entity's
respective website. The secretary of state shall prescribe the
wording of the notice to be included on the websites.
(b) The secretary of state, in cooperation with appropriate
nonprofit organizations as determined by the secretary of state and
with each party whose nominee for governor in the most recent
gubernatorial general election received 20 percent or more of the
total number of votes received by all candidates for governor in the
election, shall establish a statewide effort to educate voters
regarding the identification requirements for voting prescribed by
Chapter 63. The secretary of state may use any available funds,
including federal funds, for the purposes of this section.
SECTION 3. Section 32.111, Election Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The training standards adopted under Subsection (a)
must include provisions on the acceptance and handling of the
identification presented by a voter to an election officer under
Section 63.001.
SECTION 4. Subsection (a), Section 32.114, Election Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) The county clerk shall provide one or more sessions of
training using the standardized training program and materials
developed and provided by the secretary of state under Section
32.111 for the election judges and clerks appointed to serve in
elections ordered by the governor or a county authority. Each
election judge shall complete the training program. Each election
clerk shall complete the part of the training program relating to
the acceptance and handling of the identification presented by a
voter to an election officer under Section 63.001.
SECTION 5. Chapter 62, Election Code, is amended by adding
Section 62.016 to read as follows:
Sec. 62.016. NOTICE OF ACCEPTABLE IDENTIFICATION OUTSIDE
POLLING PLACES. The presiding judge shall post in a prominent place
on the outside of each polling location a list of the acceptable
forms of photographic and nonphotographic identification. The
notice and list must be printed using a font that is at least
24-point.
SECTION 6. Section 63.001, Election Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b), (c), (d), and (f) and adding Subsection
(g) to read as follows:
(b) On offering to vote, a voter must present to an election
officer at the polling place either:
(1) one form of identification listed in Section
63.0101(a); or
(2) two different forms of identification listed in
Section 63.0101(b) [the voter's voter registration certificate to
an election officer at the polling place].
(c) On presentation of the documentation required by
Subsection (b) [a registration certificate], an election officer
shall determine whether the voter's name on the registration
certificate is on the list of registered voters for the precinct.
(d) If the voter's name is on the precinct list of
registered voters and the voter's identity can be verified from the
documentation presented under Subsection (b), the voter shall be
accepted for voting.
(f) After determining whether to accept a voter, an election
officer shall return the voter's documentation [registration
certificate] to the voter.
(g) If the requirements for identification prescribed by
Subsection (b) are not met, the voter may be accepted for
provisional voting only under Section 63.011. An election officer
shall inform a voter who is not accepted for voting under this
section of the voter's right to cast a provisional ballot under
Section 63.011.
SECTION 7. Effective January 1, 2010, Subsection (a),
Section 63.0011, Election Code, is amended to read as follows:
(a) Before a voter may be accepted for voting, an election
officer shall ask the voter if the voter's residence address on the
precinct list of registered voters is current and whether the voter
has changed residence within the county. If the voter's address is
omitted from the precinct list under Section 18.005(c), the officer
shall ask the voter if the voter's residence as listed on
identification presented by the voter under Section 63.001(b) [the
voter's voter registration certificate] is current and whether the
voter has changed residence within the county.
SECTION 8. Subsection (a), Section 63.006, Election Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) A voter who, when offering to vote, presents a voter
registration certificate indicating that the voter is currently
registered in the precinct in which the voter is offering to vote,
but whose name is not on the precinct list of registered voters,
shall be accepted for voting if the voter's identity can be verified
from the documentation presented under Section 63.001(b).
SECTION 9. Subsection (a), Section 63.007, Election Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) A voter who, when offering to vote, presents
documentation required under Section 63.001(b) that indicates [a
voter registration certificate indicating that] the voter is
currently registered in a different precinct from the one in which
the voter is offering to vote, and whose name is not on the precinct
list of registered voters, shall be accepted for voting if the
voter's identity can be verified from the documentation and the
voter executes an affidavit stating that the voter:
(1) is a resident of the precinct in which the voter is
offering to vote or is otherwise entitled by law to vote in that
precinct;
(2) was a resident of the precinct in which the voter
is offering to vote at the time that information on the voter's
residence address was last provided to the voter registrar;
(3) did not deliberately provide false information to
secure registration in a precinct in which the voter does not
reside; and
(4) is voting only once in the election.
SECTION 10. Section 63.0101, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 63.0101. DOCUMENTATION OF PROOF OF IDENTIFICATION.
(a) The following documentation is an acceptable form [as proof]
of photo identification under this chapter:
(1) a driver's license or personal identification card
issued to the person by the Department of Public Safety that has not
expired or that expired no earlier than two years before the date of
presentation [or a similar document issued to the person by an
agency of another state, regardless of whether the license or card
has expired];
(2) a United States military identification card that
contains the person's photograph [form of identification
containing the person's photograph that establishes the person's
identity];
(3) a [birth certificate or other document confirming
birth that is admissible in a court of law and establishes the
person's identity;
[(4)] United States citizenship certificate [papers]
issued to the person that contains the person's photograph;
(4) [(5)] a United States passport issued to the
person;
(5) a license to carry a concealed handgun issued to
the person by the Department of Public Safety; or
(6) [official mail addressed to the person by name
from a governmental entity;
[(7)] a valid identification card that contains the
person's photograph and is issued by:
(A) an agency or institution of the federal
government; or
(B) an agency, institution, or political
subdivision of this state.
(b) The following documentation is acceptable as proof of
identification under this chapter:
(1) the voter's voter registration certificate or a
copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check,
paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and
address of the voter;
(2) official mail addressed to the person by name from
a governmental entity;
(3) a certified copy of a birth certificate or other
document confirming birth that is admissible in a court of law and
establishes the person's identity;
(4) United States citizenship papers issued to the
person;
(5) an original or certified copy of the person's
marriage license or divorce decree;
(6) court records of the person's adoption, name
change, or sex change;
(7) an identification card issued to the person by a
governmental entity of this state or the United States for the
purpose of obtaining public benefits, including veteran's
benefits, Medicaid, or Medicare;
(8) a temporary driving permit issued to the person by
the Department of Public Safety;
(9) a pilot's license issued to the person by the
Federal Aviation Administration or another authorized agency of the
United States;
(10) a library card that contains the person's name
issued to the person by a public library located in this state; or
(11) a hunting or fishing license issued to a person by
the Parks and Wildlife Department [or
[(8) any other form of identification prescribed by
the secretary of state].
SECTION 11. Subsection (a), Section 63.011, Election Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) A person to whom Section 63.001(g) [63.008(b) or
63.009(a)] applies may cast a provisional ballot if the person
executes an affidavit stating that the person:
(1) is a registered voter in the precinct in which the
person seeks to vote; and
(2) is eligible to vote in the election.
SECTION 12. Section 521.422, Transportation Code, is
amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to
read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (d), the [The] fee for
a personal identification certificate is:
(1) $15 for a person under 60 years of age;
(2) $5 for a person 60 years of age or older; and
(3) $20 for a person subject to the registration
requirements under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure.
(d) The department may not collect a fee for a personal
identification certificate issued to a person who states that the
person is obtaining the personal identification certificate for the
sole purpose of satisfying Section 63.001(b)(1), Election Code,
and:
(1) who is a registered voter in this state and
presents a valid voter registration certificate; or
(2) who is eligible for registration under Section
13.001, Election Code, and submits a registration application to
the department.
SECTION 13. Effective January 1, 2010, Sections 63.008 and
63.009, Election Code, are repealed.
SECTION 14. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act:
(1) the secretary of state shall adopt the training
standards and develop the training materials required to implement
the change in law made by this Act to Section 32.111, Election Code;
and
(2) the county clerk of each county shall provide a
session of training under Section 32.114, Election Code, using the
standards adopted and materials developed to implement the change
in law made by this Act to Section 32.111, Election Code.
SECTION 15. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
this section, this Act takes effect January 1, 2010.
(b) The changes in law made by Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, and 14 of
this Act take effect September 1, 2009.