By: Hughes  S.B. No. 1600
         (In the Senate - Filed March 3, 2023; March 16, 2023, read
  first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;
  April 6, 2023, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 8,
  Nays 2; April 6, 2023, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to a person submitting proof of citizenship to verify
  eligibility to vote in Texas.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 13.002, Election Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
  follows:
         (a)  A person desiring to register to vote must submit an
  application and proof of citizenship as required under Subsection
  (a-1) to the registrar of the county in which the person
  resides.  Except as provided by Subsection (e), an application must
  be submitted by personal delivery, by mail, or by telephonic
  facsimile machine in accordance with Sections 13.143(d) and (d-2).
         (a-1)  To the extent permitted by the National Voter
  Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. Section 20501 et seq.) and
  Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council Of Arizona, Inc., 570 U.S. 1 (2013),
  the secretary of state shall prescribe rules that require a person
  to submit to the registrar proof of citizenship to determine voter
  eligibility.
         SECTION 2.  (a) Not later than January 1, 2024, the
  secretary of state shall request that the federal Election
  Assistance Commission alter the mail voter registration
  application form requirements described in the National Voter
  Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. Section 20501 et seq.) to
  include a requirement that applicants submit documented proof of
  citizenship as a condition to registration in Texas.
         (b)  If the commission fails to comply before the 180th day
  following the secretary of state's request under this section, the
  attorney general shall seek enforcement in a court of law.
         SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
 
  * * * * *