Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4538 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R9340 JRJ-D
2	2	By: Swanson H.B. No. 4538
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the verification of citizenship of an applicant for
8	8	voter registration.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 13.071, Election Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 13.071. REVIEW OF APPLICATION. (a) The registrar
13	13	shall review each submitted application for registration to
14	14	determine whether it complies with Section 13.002 and indicates
15	15	that the applicant is a United States citizen eligible for
16	16	registration.
17	17	(b) If the application is submitted to the Department of
18	18	Public Safety in person with the proof of citizenship required by
19	19	Section 20.063(e), the [The] registrar shall make the determination
20	20	not later than the seventh day after the date the application is
21	21	submitted to the registrar.
22	22	(c) If the application is submitted in a manner other than
23	23	the manner described by Subsection (b), the registrar shall forward
24	24	the information relating to the applicant to the secretary of state
25	25	for determining citizenship as provided by Section 13.0721.
26	26	SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 13, Election Code, is
27	27	amended by adding Section 13.0721 to read as follows:
28	28	Sec. 13.0721. DETERMINATION OF CITIZENSHIP. (a) This
29	29	section does not apply to an application for registration submitted
30	30	to the Department of Public Safety in person with the proof of
31	31	citizenship required by Section 20.063(e).
32	32	(b) The secretary of state shall verify with the Department
33	33	of Public Safety the citizenship status of each applicant for voter
34	34	registration whose information is forwarded to the secretary of
35	35	state as provided by Section 13.071(c). If the department verifies
36	36	the applicant's citizenship status, the secretary of state shall
37	37	notify the registrar. If the department does not have information
38	38	regarding the citizenship status of the applicant or has
39	39	information indicating that the applicant is not a citizen, the
40	40	registrar and the applicant shall be notified as provided by
41	41	secretary of state rule.
42	42	(c) An applicant for voter registration who receives notice
43	43	under Subsection (b) must provide proof of citizenship to the
44	44	registrar not later than the 60th day after the date of receipt.
45	45	Except as provided by Subsection (d), this proof must be presented
46	46	in person. The following is acceptable as proof of citizenship
47	47	under this section:
48	48	(1) an unexpired passport issued to the person;
49	49	(2) a certified copy of a birth certificate or other
50	50	document confirming the person's birth that is admissible in a
51	51	court of law and establishes the person's identity, presented with
52	52	a government-issued identification that contains the person's
53	53	photograph; or
54	54	(3) United States citizenship papers issued to the
55	55	person, presented with a government-issued identification that
56	56	contains the person's photograph.
57	57	(d) An applicant may mail a certified copy of a document
58	58	described by Subsection (c)(2) or (3) with a copy of the person's
59	59	government-issued photo identification to the registrar.
60	60	(e) If an applicant does not provide proof of citizenship as
61	61	required, the registrar shall cancel the registration and notify
62	62	the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall keep a list of
63	63	applicants of which the secretary receives notice under this
64	64	section.
65	65	(f) The secretary of state shall adopt rules and prescribe
66	66	procedures to implement this section.
67	67	SECTION 3. Section 20.063, Election Code, is amended by
68	68	adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
69	69	(e) A person who submits a voter registration application to
70	70	the department in person shall at the time of submission present as
71	71	proof of citizenship:
72	72	(1) an unexpired passport issued to the person;
73	73	(2) a certified copy of a birth certificate or other
74	74	document confirming the person's birth that is admissible in a
75	75	court of law and establishes the person's identity; or
76	76	(3) United States citizenship papers issued to the
77	77	person.
78	78	SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
79	79	an application to register to vote submitted on or after the
80	80	effective date of this Act.
81	81	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.