BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 2589

By: Pena

Elections

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

There is a concern that current law does not adequately address instances involving volunteer deputy registrars intentionally suppressing a person's right to vote. Interested parties have suggested that making it a state jail felony offense for a volunteer deputy registrar to submit voter registration applications with false information may address the issue more effectively.

H.B. 2589 seeks to prevent voter intimidation and voter fraud by increasing the penalty for a volunteer deputy registrar who knowingly provides the registrar applications containing false information.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 2589 amends the Election Code to clarify the conduct that constitutes an offense relating to the delivery of voter registration applications for a volunteer deputy registrar to make it an offense for the deputy to fail to cause the proper and timely delivery of a completed voter registration application, as required by statutory provisions governing the delivery of such applications to a registrar, rather than making it an offense for the deputy to fail to comply with those statutory provisions. The bill makes it a state jail felony for a volunteer deputy registrar to knowingly cause a voter registration application containing false information to be delivered to the registrar. The bill makes conforming changes.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2011.