By: Hughes, Springer S.B. No. 1235
(In the Senate - Filed March 9, 2021; March 18, 2021, read
first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;
April 1, 2021, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 6,
Nays 3; April 1, 2021, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to verification of the accuracy of voter registration
applications and voter registration lists.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 18.068, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 18.068. COMPARISON OF INFORMATION REGARDING
INELIGIBILITY. (a) The secretary of state shall quarterly compare
the information received under Section 16.001 of this code and
Section 62.113, Government Code, to the statewide computerized
voter registration list.
(a-1) The secretary of state shall enter into an agreement
with the Department of Public Safety under which information in the
statewide computerized voter registration list is compared against
information in the database of the Department of Public Safety on a
monthly basis to verify the accuracy of information provided on
voter registration applications. The information compared must
include, at a minimum, a voter's:
(1) full legal name;
(2) former name, if applicable;
(3) date of birth;
(4) residence address;
(5) driver's license or state identification card
number;
(6) signature;
(7) social security number;
(8) documentation of lawful presence in this state;
and
(9) citizenship status.
(a-2) If the secretary determines from information received
under Subsection (a) or (a-1) that a voter on the registration list
may be ineligible to vote [is deceased or has been excused or
disqualified from jury service because the voter is not a citizen],
the secretary shall send notice of the determination to the voter
registrar of the counties considered appropriate by the secretary.
(b) The secretary of state shall by rule determine what
information combinations identified as common to a voter and to an
individual who is deceased or ineligible to vote constitute a weak
match or a strong match in order to:
(1) produce the least possible impact on Texas voters;
and
(2) fulfill its responsibility to manage the voter
rolls.
(c) The secretary of state may not determine that a voter is
deceased or ineligible to vote based on a weak match. The
secretary of state may inform the county of the voter's residence
that a weak match exists.
(d) On receiving notification from the secretary of state
under Subsection (c) that a weak match of identifying information
exists for a county voter and an individual who is deceased or
ineligible to vote, the county shall investigate whether the voter
is that [the] individual [who is deceased].
(e) The secretary of state may determine that a voter is
deceased or ineligible to vote based on a strong match.
(f) The secretary of state may obtain, for purposes of
determining whether a voter is deceased or ineligible to vote,
information from other state agency databases relating to a voter
that is the same type of information that the secretary of state or
a voter registrar collects or stores for voter registration
purposes.
(g) Not later than December 31 of each year, the secretary
of state shall provide a report to the legislature of the number of
voters determined to be ineligible under this section during the
calendar year. The report must include the reason for
ineligibility for each voter.
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
an application to register to vote submitted on or after the
effective date of this Act.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
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