Virginia House Bill HB68

Virginia 2022 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/4/22
• Refer: 1/4/22
• Report Pass: 2/11/22
• Engrossed: 2/14/22
• Refer: 2/16/22
• Report Pass: 3/1/22

Caption

Voter registration; presumption of domicile, members of a uniformed service and others.

Impact

By reducing complexity in voter registration processes for military personnel and their families, HB68 seeks to facilitate greater voter participation among these groups. The bill establishes that, if a military member or their dependent maintains physical presence and a place of abode in Virginia, they are presumed to have established domicile in the Commonwealth. This provision is intended to alleviate the challenges service members face when registering to vote from different locations due to their military commitments.

Summary

House Bill 68 focuses on voter registration and establishes presumptions regarding domicile for members of the uniformed services and certain other individuals. The bill proposes amendments to the definitions and regulations surrounding voter registration, particularly how residency and domicile are established for military members and their dependents. It aims to clarify the criteria under which individuals in the American Conservation and Youth Service Corps and military personnel are considered residents for voting purposes, thereby ensuring their voting rights are protected while they are stationed away from their home jurisdictions.

Contention

One of the notable points of contention surrounding HB68 stems from the balance between state laws and the rights of local jurisdictions to determine their own residency requirements. Critics may argue that by setting these presumptions at the state level, the bill could undermine local autonomy and create inconsistencies in how residency is determined across different localities. Furthermore, there might be concerns regarding the implications of these presumptions for non-military voters and how they may affect the integrity of voter registration systems, especially in jurisdictions with varying definitions of residency.