By Danburg                                           H.C.R. No. 185
       74R11336 GGS-D
                              HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
    1-1        WHEREAS, The enactment of the National Voter Registration Act
    1-2  of 1993 marked a renewed commitment and resolve by the federal
    1-3  government to maximize the opportunities to become registered to
    1-4  vote and to increase the overall number of registered voters in
    1-5  this country, thereby increasing citizen participation in the
    1-6  electoral process; and
    1-7        WHEREAS, While the goals of the National Voter Registration
    1-8  Act are shared by the citizens of this country, a balance must be
    1-9  struck between the steps to be taken to accomplish those goals and
   1-10  the adverse impact this unfunded federal mandate may have on the
   1-11  fiscal and organizational structure and policy of state and local
   1-12  governments; now, therefore, be it
   1-13        RESOLVED, That the 74th Legislature of the State of Texas
   1-14  hereby respectfully request the Congress of the United States to
   1-15  recognize the importance of constitutionally guaranteed state
   1-16  sovereignty and to work closely with state and local governments to
   1-17  reduce the impact wrought by the enactment of unfunded federal
   1-18  mandates; and, be it further
   1-19        RESOLVED, That the 74th Legislature of the State of Texas
   1-20  hereby respectfully request the Congress of the United States to
   1-21  eliminate from the National Voter Registration Act the requirement
   1-22  for an applicant for agency services to complete and sign a
   1-23  declination of registration form as long as the applicant shows a
   1-24  voter registration certificate or the applicant has previously
    2-1  completed and signed the declination form; to provide to
    2-2  appropriate state and local governments federal mail franking
    2-3  privileges for the mailings of voter registration applications
    2-4  required by the Act; and to reduce the required period in the Act
    2-5  to retain on the voter registration records the names of persons
    2-6  who have moved and not responded to the voter registrars through
    2-7  voting or notification from a period encompassing two federal
    2-8  election cycles to a period encompassing one federal election
    2-9  cycle; and, be it further
   2-10        RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
   2-11  copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
   2-12  the speaker of the house of representatives and president of the
   2-13  senate of the United States Congress, and to all members of the
   2-14  Texas delegation to the congress with the request that it be
   2-15  officially entered in the Congressional Record as a memorial to the
   2-16  Congress of the United States of America.