By Ellis                                        S.C.R. No. 52

      75R9348 CDD-D                           

                                CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

 1-1           WHEREAS, Lack of voter participation has been a cause of

 1-2     great concern at both the national and state level, prompting the

 1-3     United States Congress to pass the 1993 National Voter Registration

 1-4     Act; commonly known as "Motor-Voter," the legislation made

 1-5     registering to vote more convenient by allowing persons to register

 1-6     when renewing driver's licenses or signing up for welfare benefits;

 1-7     and

 1-8           WHEREAS, This push to register more voters resulted in a

 1-9     record number of Texans being registered to vote in November's

1-10     general election, an increase of almost 25 percent from four years

1-11     earlier; and

1-12           WHEREAS, Even though access to registration has been

1-13     simplified and registration numbers have increased, actual voter

1-14     participation at the polls has continued to decrease, with only 53

1-15     percent of the state's registered voters exercising their right to

1-16     vote in the last general election; and

1-17           WHEREAS, This lack of participation indicates that increased

1-18     access to registration forms alone is not sufficient to reach all

1-19     Texans and that other factors to facilitate access to the ballot,

1-20     such as amending the state requirement that a person must register

1-21     to vote no later than 30 days prior to an election, may facilitate

1-22     increased participation; and

1-23           WHEREAS, Recent technological advances have made the process

1-24     of voting and the tabulation of ballots easier, and several states

 2-1     have experienced great success enacting legislation to allow

 2-2     persons to register at the polls on election day; and

 2-3           WHEREAS, This same-day voter registration option should be

 2-4     considered in Texas to further encourage the citizens of the state

 2-5     to take part in this fundamental and basic right; now, therefore,

 2-6     be it

 2-7           RESOLVED, That the 75th Legislature of the State of Texas

 2-8     hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house

 2-9     of representatives to create a joint interim committee to study the

2-10     feasibility of registering voters at polling places; and, be it

2-11     further

2-12           RESOLVED, That the secretary of state work with the committee

2-13     to develop guidelines and procedures necessary to implement such

2-14     action; and, be it further

2-15           RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be

2-16     governed by such general rules and policies for joint interim

2-17     committees as the 75th Legislature may adopt and that such rules

2-18     and policies supersede the provisions of this resolution to the

2-19     extent of any conflict; and, be it further

2-20           RESOLVED, That the joint interim committee submit a full

2-21     report, including findings and recommendations, to the 76th Texas

2-22     Legislature when it convenes in January 1999.